Serena Tippet and the Monster of Slytherin
by Rainbow169
Summary: Continuing the story started in "The Four Witches," the girls enter their second year. Once again, there are mysterious attacks aimed at muggleborns, and Teddy Lupin's prophecy seems like it could possibly come true.
1. Death and Rebirth

Author's Notes

This story continues the one begun in "The Four Witches Go to Hogwarts," about Rosie Weasley and her friends. Thus, if you have not read that story, this one will be very confusing. As before, I do not own the Harry Potter characters or Hogwarts, although there are some characters in this story who are my creations.

Chapter 1: Death and Rebirth

"Avada Kedavra!" The ominous green light struck the pretty young witch in the face. She toppled off the deserted bridge, landing on the street below. Another young woman, her dark brown hair cut short, peeked over the side. She grinned maniacally as she watched a large truck speed over the witch's corpse. The sadistic viewer then did something extraordinary. After looking around to make sure there were no witnesses, her body suddenly changed, shrinking and growing furrier until she looked exactly like a cute brown bunny rabbit. The rabbit hopped away quickly, running until she dashed through a pet door in what looked like an ordinary house. The rabbit then grew back into a human, grinning excitedly at the woman who was lounging on the couch.

"I did it, Heather! It was easy, too, the only ones around were muggles, and they're just going to think she was run over," the rabbit-woman whispered excitedly, despite the fact that the person she was addressing was the only other inhabitant of the house at the moment.

"Good. I can't believe a Slytherin like that Ashley Smooge was ever allowed to teach Ancient Runes, when a subject like that is only suited to Ravenclaw minds. I'm sure Ashley was corrupting those innocent children and filling their heads with disgusting blood purity notions," Heather declared vehemently.

"Now your husband can teach that subject, like he always wanted to, and he can help Ravenclaw rule Hogwarts," the rabbit-woman said with a satisfied smile.

A few days later, yet another Hogwarts professor was found dead. It could have been by the Killing Curse, but Orion Sparks' body was stabbed with so many knives as well. Smugly satisfied by his death, Pansy Parkinson then entered Malfoy Manor, around which she had placed many protection charms.

"WAAAAAH!" Pansy's smirk grew as she heard the baby's cry, and she watched Draco hurry down the hallway to the nursery.

"I was sure that it was the end of dirty nappies after Scorpius learned how to use the loo," she heard Draco muttering to himself. Pansy just smirked even more.

"She's going to replace Scorpius in more than just that," Pansy whispered triumphantly before heading to her room. Little Cassiopeia Malfoy, only a few months old, already looked like the perfect cross between her parents. Her features and her gray eyes resembled the Malfoy side of her family, but her dark hair signified that Pansy was her mother. Pansy felt that men were laughably easy to seduce if you just drugged them with Amortentia and the Imperius Curse, as she had done to Draco back in October, soon after Scorpius had left for Hogwarts. Several months later, Cassiopeia was born And just as Cassiopeia was going to replace Scorpius, Pansy felt that she would be the perfect replacement for Orion Sparks. What better way to make sure Slytherin didn't fall into the hands of blood traitors like Amanda Quigley than to become a teacher herself? Draco's wife Astoria wouldn't even care, given that Pansy had killed her as well. Astoria's sister Daphne was also out of the way, as she had been made into a willing servant for Pansy with the use of the Imperius Curse. All was set and ready in Pansy's world for her to make sure Hogwarts knew that the Slytherins were in charge.

Meanwhile, Amber McAngus was celebrating in Scotland while Diamond Flannery rejoiced in Ireland. Neither person knew what the other was doing, but they were both very happy about the same thing. The Arithmancy and Muggle Studies professors at Hogwarts had both left together on a long journey, and replacements would be needed for both of them. It was perfect for both Amber, who had her sights set on the Muggle Studies job, and Diamond, who wanted to teach Arithmancy. However, each of them ultimately had opposing goals. Amber felt that it was only right that Gryffindor take its place as the superior Hogwarts house, given the events of the most recent Voldemort War. As for Diamond, he believed it was time for Hufflepuff to receive glory and prove that it was better than those other elitist houses.

A few days later, unaware of the people who were planning to escalate the house rivalries at Hogwarts, Harry and Ginny Potter were taking their children to Diagon Alley to get their new school supplies for the coming year. This time, Scorpius Malfoy was accompanying them, and so was Rebecca Dursley, who had just received her Hogwarts letter recently. However, Rebecca wasn't as happy about this as she might otherwise be. For most of her life, ever since Dudley had realized his daughter was a witch, he and Rebecca had hidden her powers from Vernon and Petunia, fearing their reactions. A week ago, her secret finally was revealed when, during a visit with her grandparents, an owl flew up to the door and threw her Hogwarts letter through the mail slot. Rebecca had tried to hide it, but Vernon, thinking it was for him, took it from her anyway. Upon realizing what the letter meant, he had a heart attack and had to be rushed to the hospital. He survived, but things were very different now between Rebecca and her grandparents. They blamed her, of course, Petunia wondering if Lily's genes had corrupted Dudley's daughter. For his part, Dudley had just seemed frightened, and thus sent Rebecca to stay with the Potters until things cleared up, if they ever would.

"What house do you think you'll be in, Rebecca?" Rebecca was startled out of her angry, gloomy thoughts by James's voice.

"I hope she's in Gryffindor with us. She will have to be brave since she has evil grandparents like mine," Scorpius spoke up.

"Or she could be in Slytherin. You never know, being muggleborn doesn't exclude her. Like that werewolf girl," James pointed out.

"I don't care which house I go to. Uncle Harry told me they all have good things about them," Rebecca shrugged, "And I don't care about my stupid grandparents. They're just muggles. It's their problem if they can't see how much better the magical world is." Scorpius stared at her, horrified.

"You sound just like Father," he gasped, "People like him who looked down on muggles and muggleborns, torturing them for fun...I'm sure the muggle world is just different from ours. Like how other countries are different, but it doesn't mean we're better than them. The magical world isn't that great anyway, not all wizards are as wonderful as Harry. Not if it has people like my family in it, and I'm sure I inherited their evil too."

"You're not evil. Just because your parents are a certain way, it doesn't mean you'll be just like them. I'm living proof of that," Rebecca replied proudly. Why would she want to be like those magic-hating grandparents of hers, or like her father, who was cowardly and still feared her magic, even if he tried to be kind to her? Rebecca was not a normal Dursley, she was a witch, better than them, she felt. They stopped first at Gringotts, the wizarding bank, and James asked an unfortunate question.

"Are we going to visit the Malfoy vault too? Since Scorpius is with us, I'm sure he'd be allowed to take stuff out of there. That family's even richer than us, I'm sure he could buy everyone's stuff easily and have money left over to buy the whole Gryffindor Quidditch team new racing brooms!" James exclaimed, visions of actually winning a Quidditch game dancing in his head.

"No! It's evil money! I'm sure it was stolen from muggleborns or something!" Scorpius shouted, suddenly frightened of entering Gringotts.

"Then give it to me!" called Hugo Weasley, who was arriving with his family as well. Scorpius looked at Ron and Hermione with pleading, teary eyes.

"If it would help cleanse the evil Malfoy money, then maybe you should take it. You Weasleys deserve it much more than me, you actually worked for your money," he offered.

"What about the Gryffindor Quidditch team? Isn't that a good cause too?" James blurted out.

"Hush, James, I already promised I would get you a new racing broom. And Scorpius, are you sure you'll be allowed to use your family's money anyway?" Harry pointed out, although he did find Scorpius's generosity to be very sweet, especially towards the Weasleys.

"I don't know," Scorpius realized, unsure whether or not he was relieved or disappointed that they probably weren't going to be visiting his family's vault this year. If not, then he would have to do extra chores for Harry and Ginny to make up for them buying his books and school supplies, something Scorpius would do gladly. However, this was easier said than done, as Scorpius's former attempts at helping with the chores had usually caused more trouble than they were worth, mainly because of his clumsiness. After breaking several dishes, photo frames and managing to accidentally set the table on fire with his wand, Scorpius's attempts at helping had ended after he fell down the long staircase while carrying James and Albus's brooms and knocked himself out. Harry and Ginny finally had to tell him that while they appreciated his efforts to help, it would be better if he stopped trying to help so much, especially for his own safety.

After the trip to Gringotts, where it was revealed that Scorpius was NOT allowed to use his family's money, as Draco had forbidden it, the group headed to Ollivander's to get Rebecca her new wand. Of course, Ollivander himself was not there anymore, given that he had died a few years earlier, from old age. Padma Patil, formerly his apprentice and now the owner of the shop, was waiting for customers at the desk.

"Why hello, Harry! Who's getting a wand this time? I thought Lily wasn't going to Hogwarts until next year," Padma greeted him cheerfully.

"It's for me. My name is Rebecca Dursley."

"She's my cousin's daughter," Harry explained, "She'll be entering her first year." Padma looked at Rebecca intently, and then pulled a wand box off of a nearby shelf. This first one didn't fit, but after a few tries, Rebecca found a wand that matched her. It was 10 inches long, made of ash with a core of unicorn hair, and she smiled at it, loving the feel of the power it held. A whole new world was opening up to her, one that she could finally join.


	2. James's Big Prank

Chapter 2: James's Big Prank

After Rebecca got everything she would need at Hogwarts, including a new pet cat she named Tabitha, the rather large group all went to George's joke shop, Weasley Wizard Wheezes. James pulled Scorpius away from the others, seeming to continue their conversation about Sirius Black on the way to the bathroom. Once they were inside, with no one else around, James took a small vial of a strange liquid out of the pocket of his baggy blue pants.

"What is that? Is that a new medicine you need to take?" Scorpius wondered, confused as to why they were in the bathroom.

"It's for you. It'll turn you into a true Potter, and I promise you won't see any scenes from the past this time," James stated, and then he opened the vial and put a bit of his own hair in it. The strange substance swirled, turning a bright red color. "Drink it. I promise it won't hurt you. When you come out, you'll see something funny and exciting." With that James took a large cloak out of his pocket and covered himself with it. Scorpius yelped in surprise as it looked like James had completely disappeared!

"Trust me, Scorp, if you drink that stuff you'll like what you see in the mirror," came James's disembodied voice as the door to the bathroom seemed to open and shut again on its own. Scorpius stared at the red drink, unsure if he should drink it or not. He did want to become a true Potter, to not be a Malfoy anymore, and it would be wonderful if he could see something he liked in the mirror for once. But why was James acting so mysterious all of a sudden?

"A real Gryffindor wouldn't be scared. And Harry Potter's son wouldn't do anything evil," Scorpius muttered to himself before grabbing the vial of red liquid and drinking it in one gulp. He then screamed in pain and surprise as his skin began bubbling, it felt like he was burning inside! His skin became slightly less pale, and he watched in the mirror as his hair darkened to black, his eyes to a chocolate brown, and his features softened, becoming not quite so pointy. Unfortunately, he also grew a little taller, which made his clothing a bit small on him.

"I look like James," Scorpius realized when the transformation had finished, "That stuff turned me into James." He then heard crashes and shouts coming from outside in the main store. Scorpius took his shoes off, which were tight now, and carried them as he hurried to see what was going on. Colorful rubber balls were bouncing and flying everywhere, knocking things off of the shelves, hitting the customers and generally causing havoc. He noticed Rosie Weasley, who had come in with her family, was blocking the Pygmy Puff cages protectively with her plump body. There was a scream as several Skiving Snackboxes were knocked off of a shelf, burying a frightened Lily Potter underneath. Albus nearly crashed into Scorpius as he ran for the bathroom, which he thought might be safer. He stared at what he thought was his brother confusedly.

"Why are you wearing Scorpius's clothes, James?" he asked.

"I am Scorpius. I just drank this red stuff that made me look like James," Scorpius explained innocently, "Why are there balls flying around and wrecking things?" Did James cause all this? Was this something he thought would be an exciting surprise, and did it go all wrong in execution?

"You drank red stuff that made you look like James?" Albus repeated incredulously. He then remembered the stories his father had told him. There was a potion that could be used to make yourself look like other people, Polyjuice Potion. But why would Scorpius drink Polyjuice Potion in the bathroom? Did he just find it there? And if that was Scorpius, then where was James?

"What did you do with Scorpius?!" Scorpius was then startled as Harry joined them, looking angry, "Did you steal his clothes and leave him in the loo?!" Harry pushed past him and was about to search the stalls when he noticed the empty vial sitting by the sinks.

"James gave that to me. It made me turn into him when I drank it, and then he put on this cloak that made him disappear," Scorpius explained.

"How in the name of Merlin did James get Polyjuice Potion?" Harry muttered to himself, realizing what had happened. Not to mention given what Scorpius had said, it also sounded like James might have stolen the Invisibility Cloak too. In the main part of the store, Hermione, Ginny and Ron were busy catching the balls that were flying around, while George searched for the empty box they were supposed to go in. Hugo, in dodging one of the balls that was left, suddenly crashed into what he thought was thin air. Hugo and the invisible figure stumbled backwards from the collision, and the Invisibility Cloak fell down, revealing James, who was holding a box that was marked with "Rainbow Rubber Bouncers."

"Aww, I should've switched clothes with him," James realized, as he spotted Scorpius, recognizable by his red and gold outfit, "At least I gave Scorpius his wish!" He called this last remark to his father, who looked furious. James then became frightened as Harry silently pulled a very important slip of paper out of his pocket. It was the permission slip for Hogsmeade, as James was finally a 3rd year and would be able to go.

"No! ANYTHING BUT THAT!! Those balls were meant to be let loose!" James protested. It was in vain, though, as Harry ripped the permission slip in two.

"Do you know why you have just lost the privilege to go to Hogsmeade, James Sirius Potter? If you think it's just because you let those rubber balls loose in the store, think again," Harry began, using a sterner tone than James had ever heard him use.

"No, I don't know why! You should understand! You hated not being allowed to go when you were my age!" James shouted back, forgetting the significance of the cloak in his hands.

"That's exactly why I chose to punish you in that manner, because hopefully this time you will learn not to steal from my office. And I am talking about that Invisibility Cloak in your hands."

"Weren't you going to give it to me anyway? Since I'm the oldest and it belonged to the first James?"

"Maybe in many years, if I ever retire from being an Auror. I use that cloak as part of my work, for catching Dark wizards. And you have just proved that you do not deserve it. They may be younger, but Lily and Albus have never stolen anything from me or Ginny. I also don't know where you got that Polyjuice Potion from, but if you stole it from someone, you will be in even bigger trouble."

"I was just trying to make Scorpius happy! He always says that he wants to look different!" James pleaded, feeling this was completely unfair. How was he supposed to know that cloak was still used for Auror work? James had just always thought it was a family heirloom, something that he was sure to get eventually.

"Then you should blame me! James just said he was doing it for me! PUNISH ME INSTEAD!!" Scorpius, who had been watching from near the bathroom, suddenly prostrated himself at Harry's feet, sobbing. "Everything bad that happened to you is all the fault of me and my family!" James stared at Scorpius, and then he started to back away, intending to escape under the Invisibility Cloak. However, when James tried to pull it over his head, he found a pair of hands holding onto the other end.

"Let me see that thing! I want to use it to play tricks on people!" Hugo demanded, trying to get the cloak away from his older cousin.

"No way! You got me in trouble already! You're the one who knocked the cloak off of me!" James shouted back, managing to yank the cloak out of Hugo's hands.

"I got you in trouble?! You're the one who stole it in the first place! Don't act like I told you to do it!" Hugo retorted.

Rebecca had been watching everything, and she was even more amazed at the potential power being a witch could give her. James had a cloak that could turn him invisible, and it sounded like Scorpius drank something called "Polyjuice" that made him look like James. Not to mention those wild rubber balls that bounced and flew around the room better than any toy created by mere muggles. What confused her was Scorpius. Why did he blame himself for James having stolen his father's cloak? Sure, she knew well enough that his father, Draco Malfoy, had apparently been enemies with Harry in school, given what she heard from both Scorpius and the Potters, but she didn't understand why Scorpius would blame himself for things that he didn't even do. She watched as Ron and Hermione scolded both James and Hugo, and her Uncle Harry was trying to convince Scorpius that James's misbehavior wasn't his fault. She looked at Rosie, who was helping put the Pygmy Puffs back in their cage.

"Why does Scorpius blame himself like that? Even for things that happened to Uncle Harry a long time ago," she asked Rosie.

"I don't really know. It's not like the Malfoys caused ALL the problems in Uncle Harry's life. I do understand how he feels, a little bit. It can be very hard when people see you or hear what your name is and they expect you to be just like your parents," Rosie said, "Sometimes I'm afraid that people will be disappointed in me since I'm not as smart as Mum was."

"You're smart. You're a lot better than any of Uncle Harry's kids at making things work, like the television set Dad gave Uncle Harry for a present last year. I remember how you were able to use it right away after your mum showed everyone how it worked. Too bad you weren't there to help James when he broke the DVD player after trying to use it to cook toast," Rebecca remembered with a grin.

"I suppose, but Mum was always smarter than me. If I was as smart as her, I would've been able to learn how to use that DVD player just by reading the manual, like how she always could perform spells that she only read about in her textbooks. Instead I had to watch her do it first," Rosie sighed.

"I know I'm smarter than my stupid father. And that's because I have a magic brain!" Rebecca bragged, confident that she would succeed at Hogwarts that September.


	3. Travel to the Burrow

Chapter 3: Travel to the Burrow

The weeks passed and soon it was July 30, which was a very special day for Serena Tippet. She had been invited to come stay with Rosie Weasley for about a week, since not only was the Quidditch World Cup coming very soon, but Serena was also invited to the big celebration at the Burrow on July 31, which was going to combine Teddy and Victoire's wedding with a birthday party for Rosie and Roxanne Weasley, Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom, whose birthdays were all very close together. This was, for Serena, a chance to learn more about the wizarding world, and her parents were also eager to hear the stories and cultural information she could tell them when she came back from her trip. Unlike some muggles like the Dursleys, who looked upon magic with suspicion and fear, Sharon and Basil Tippet found their daughter's magic powers and the wizarding world to be very interesting and exciting. It was about 9:30 in the morning when Serena had all her belongings packed and ready to go, waiting near the front door with her dog on her lap.

"Are the wizards you're staying with coming on their brooms? Or would that break that law we heard about, how wizards have to hide their magic from people like us," Sharon asked. Despite the fact that she was aware of the secrecy laws the magic world followed, she hoped that she could get to see people flying on broomsticks, just like the witches did in the stories she had read as a child.

"That would definitely break the secrecy laws. Rosie told me they have a car, so they'll probably come in that," Serena answered with a smile. She wondered for a moment if it would be possible for her parents to come see a Quidditch match, but she was distracted by the sight of a car pulling up by the window. She could see Rosie and Hugo getting out, along with Ron and Hermione. It wasn't long before Serena had said goodbye to her parents and she was soon riding in the backseat of the car with Rosie and Hugo, Jessica sitting on her lap as usual.

"Too bad the full moon's passed. I sure was hoping to get to turn into a werewolf while you were here. Lily won't bite me, but you might," Hugo said, grinning mischieviously at Serena.

"Why would you want to be a werewolf? Do you have some need to feel sick every month and take bad-tasting medicine? You may not know this, but the transformations hurt a lot, even with the medicine," Serena warned him.

"It's really that bad? I thought it meant I could turn into a big scary monster whenever I wanted," Hugo pouted.

"I think you have a werewolf confused with an animagus. Werewolves only transform at the full moon, and they do it whether they want to or not. I'm not too sure how you could become an animagus, but I think it takes a lot of studying, and you don't get to choose what kind of animal you turn into. You also would have to register your animal form with the Ministry of Magic, like Victoire did," Rosie corrected him, "But you might be able to be an animagus when you get older, if you study hard, and maybe Victoire could help you."

"So even if I became an animagus, I still wouldn't get to choose my animal? You mean I might be something wimpy like a bunny rabbit? That sounds like it's not even worth all that work," Hugo sighed, "Unless I could be a TALKING bunny rabbit? Can animagi talk like people?"

"I don't think they can, but they can still think like people. You might have to ask Victoire, she'd know more about it than me," Rosie said, "But you don't have to turn into an animal to be powerful, there are many strong witches and wizards who aren't animagi."

They eventually arrived at the Burrow, and Serena noticed that not only were Arthur and Molly Weasley waiting to greet them, but Galaxy and Bunny were there too.

"Hi, Serena! Bunny and I used the Floo powder to get here earlier!" Galaxy exclaimed. Serena stared at them, confused.

"What's that? Is that a powder that makes you fly without a broomstick?" she wondered.

"No, you put it in the fireplace and you just say the place you want to go to and then you pop out in the fireplace there," Galaxy explained as Bunny took Serena's suitcase and bags. Jessica ran out into the front yard, sniffing eagerly at Molly and Arthur's feet.

"Is Victoire here yet? I want to ask her about being an animagus!" Hugo blurted out. Before anyone could answer his question, a loud bang was heard coming from one of the top windows, and smoke billowed out.

"Victoire is here all right, and so are Dominique and Louis. And someone let Louis and Lucy have a blender," Molly said, giving a pointed look to her husband.

"I didn't know they were going to blow things up with it!" Arthur protested as they hurried into the house to see what their troublemaking grandchildren were up to.

"I'm surprised Louis Weasley is still allowed to use that blender after what happened to it last year," Serena commented.

"What did he do with it? He didn't bring it to Hogwarts, did he? If it's an electrical blender, it wouldn't work properly there anyway," Rosie said.

"He did. He thought I could show him how to use it since my parents aren't magic, and Andromeda grabbed my wand and tried to blend it. I think the wand's magic made it spark and it blew up the blender," Serena explained, "If that's the same blender, then someone must have repaired it for him."

"Andromeda tried to blend your wand?! I'm surprised she's not been expelled by now!" Rosie gasped, horrified.

"I think Professor Quigley hopes she can teach Andromeda to not be so spoiled. Her parents are always sending her treats, and if her bragging is correct, it sounds like her parents just let her do whatever she wants at home," Serena said, "It's not like she doesn't get punished, almost no one likes her because she's probably singlehandedly lost Slytherin the most points, and I've rarely seen her earn any, either."

"Rosie already showed me the room we'll be staying in. Can we show it to you too? Maybe we can see what Louis and Lucy were doing with that blender, too," Galaxy suggested with an impish grin.

"We can show Serena the room, but I don't think we should go near that explosion unless it's safe," Rosie cautioned. Galaxy pouted slightly but she and Rosie lead Serena into the Burrow. One of the first things that caught Serena's eye, besides the sink full of dishes that were washing themselves, was the oddest clock she had ever seen. It didn't have any numbers on it, and it had more hands on it than Serena had ever seen on any clock. Staring at it, she was sure there were over 12 different hands, most of them pointing towards the word "home." Other words, such as "work," "school," and disturbingly, "mortal danger," were listed around the circle of the clock. Stepping closer for a better look, Serena thought she recognized some of the people in the pictures that were on the ends of the many hands.

"Rosie, this clock has you on it! And I see Louis Weasley and a bunch of your other cousins, and your dad's on it too!" Serena exclaimed, amazed as she realized that this was a very magical clock that could tell the location and condition of any of the people who were on the hands.

"Everyone in the Weasley family is listed on this clock. My grandparents, my father, my uncles and aunt, and all my cousins are on here. It would be more crowded that even this, but I was told that when someone dies, their hand on the clock falls off," Rosie explained. As the three girls neared the stairs, they could hear Molly shouting at Louis and Lucy, and from what they could hear, it sounded like they had tried to blend one of the firecrackers from the joke shop. It also sounded like they had injured themselves in the process, which was to be expected.

"Did they really put a firecracker in a blender? Even I know not to do that!" Galaxy exclaimed.

"I just hope they'll be okay, especially since Louis's sister has her wedding tomorrow. I would hate it if I was sick or hurt and Hugo had a special event that I might miss," Rosie worried as they neared the bedroom where they would be staying.

"Obviously being magic doesn't mean people won't be stupid," Serena commented, rolling her eyes, "I'm not even sure why anyone would want to put a firecracker in a blender."

"At least they weren't blending their wands," Galaxy giggled, "Well, here's the room we're staying in. See? There's even a place to put Jessica's little kennel." Jessica, who had been following Serena's feet, bounded ahead and began sniffing around the room, becoming very interested in the cage that held Candy, Rosie's Pygmy Puff.

"Where is Bunny staying? The ceiling doesn't look tall enough for her, or can it alter itself like the ceilings in the Hogwarts classrooms do?" Serena wondered.

"Bunny and Hagrid are staying in a tent outside. They were both invited to the wedding and I think they're going to the Quidditch World Cup, too," Galaxy explained. A magical wedding, birthday celebration, and a big wizarding sporting event! Serena was certain she would have a lot of amazing tales to tell her parents about when she got back.


	4. The Party

Chapter 4: The Party

When Serena woke up the next morning, she was a little surprised to find herself on a sleeping bag, with Rosie sleeping on a bed above her. Galaxy and a girl named Rebecca Dursley were on other beds, which had been brought into the room for them. She then remembered where she was and smiled. Last night was a lot of fun for Serena's dog Jessica, especially when Victoire turned into a Pomeranian herself and the two dogs got to play with each other. The puppy had also liked greeting all the people who were staying at or near the Burrow. Serena knew that Rosie had lots of cousins, since her father had so many siblings, but it was something else to see them all in one place. Later that morning, Victoire Weasley and Teddy Lupin would get married, and then there would be a big party, not only for the newlyweds, but also for Rosie, Harry, Roxanne and Neville, whose birthdays were all around the same time of the year.

Finally, it was time. Serena led Jessica out on a leash, to the orchard and garden next to the Burrow, the site of the first big wizard party she had ever attended. She was dressed in a beautiful purple and silver party dress she had brought from home, and she had even tied a silver bow around Jessica's neck. She sat in a seat near the front, next to the aisle and next to Galaxy and Bunny, who had an extra-large, reinforced seat. The music from the band began to play, and the wedding party paraded slowly through the aisle. Serena smiled as she noticed Lily was the flower girl, she thought Lily was almost as cute as her Pomeranian dog, especially in the adorable white dress she was wearing. Rosie was one of the bridesmaids, along with Molly Jr. and Victoire's younger sister Dominique. She watched as Teddy and Victoire both took their places on the platform, with a man who Serena assumed must be a wizard version of a priest or other church official.

"Have you ever been to a muggle wedding? Are they different or similar to this?" a voice whispered behind Serena, "I was just curious because I'm sure my father would never let me hear anything about muggle culture." Serena rolled her eyes; why did Scorpius Malfoy have to sit behind her?!

"I can tell you later. Just be quiet for now, that's what Mum and Dad told me to do when I went to a wedding with them," Serena hissed at him, wondering if he was annoying anyone else with his big mouth. She turned back to the front and watched as Teddy and Victoire promised to love and cherish one another, taking their vows.

"I now pronounce you bonded for life." Serena stared in amazement as silver sparkles flew out of the priest wizard's wand and glittered over Teddy and Victoire's bodies. That part's definitely different from muggle weddings, Serena thought, part of her hoping that Scorpius would find some other muggleborn to answer his questions. She had been to some weddings with her parents, but they weren't a type of event she liked much, and she certainly didn't consider herself to be an expert on them. Hopefully someone like Hermione Granger could answer Scorpius's questions, since she had already been married herself.

"Have you ever been to a magic wedding before?" Galaxy asked Serena when the ceremony had ended, "Do you like this kind better or muggle weddings? I've been to both, since Mum is a witch but Dad's a muggle, and I think being 'bonded for life' sounds kind of final, like you're chained together, but at muggle weddings, they say 'you may now kiss the bride' and some people don't like kissing in front of a big crowd of people."

"No, this is the first time," Serena said, a little startled by Galaxy's chattering, "I don't know which kind I like better yet. Wizarding weddings seem less religious, though."

"I know which kind are better. Wizard weddings. They have magic. That makes them better," stated Rebecca, who had overheard their conversation. Unfortunately, Scorpius, being seated behind Serena, heard her as well.

"Being magic doesn't make you a better person, though. There's still evil people in the magic world," Scorpius said, "People like my father and grandfather. I'm sure you've met many people who have kind hearts who aren't magic." Rebecca rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm not talking about being nice. I mean that muggles are weak. Wizards and witches have powers that they don't have. The only reason muggles have things like computers is because they're just compensating for the fact that they can't use magic. You can't deny that we have special powers that they don't have," Rebecca bragged, "Yeah, I know muggles have things like computers and email IS quicker than using owls, but Uncle Harry can just teleport to work! Muggles can't do that!"

"But having special talents doesn't make you better than other people. Not if those talents are used to hurt people," Scorpius protested.

"You are such a goody-two-shoes," Rebecca muttered, "I'm going to find Lucy, she's been teaching me some neat spells." She walked off, leaving Serena, who sighed when she noticed that Scorpius looked like he might start crying again.

"It's okay, Scorpius. Rebecca probably doesn't know about people like Voldemort yet. The magic world is something new and fun for her," Galaxy said, trying to reassure him.

"But what if she likes Voldemort? What if she tries to restart the Death Eaters?!" Scorpius panicked, "The things she's saying are exactly the same kind of beliefs my evil family has! Even if her own family hates magic, it doesn't mean that wizards are better than muggles!"

"Scorpius, there's someone you might like to meet." Scorpius was surprised to see that Harry had come looking for him. "Remember when I told you about Andromeda Tonks? She's here at the party, since she's Teddy's grandmother."

"Can you take me to meet her, please? When you told me about her, it gave me some hope that I might be able to overcome the evil Malfoy blood, if she really is my great-aunt," Scorpius said, his eyes shining with tears and hope.

"I don't understand why he sees HIMSELF as evil," Serena muttered to Galaxy, when Scorpius had left with Harry. "I mean, if one of my parents ever did anything wrong, it wouldn't be my fault, it would be theirs."

"I think it's because of when he looked into Mr. Potter's pensieve. When he saw his dad being mean, his dad was our age, and Scorpius told me he thought that was himself until Draco's name was mentioned. I agree with you, though, Scorpius shouldn't blame himself for things that happened before he was born. But I think seeing those things in the pensieve gives him scary dreams where he's the one doing all the bad things Draco did, and Electra and David don't help either, they're always blaming Scorpius and saying that he's evil just because he's a Malfoy," Galaxy explained, "I guess he believes them because their parents are teachers at Hogwarts."

"Hi! I remember meeting you when I visited Hogwarts!" Serena turned to see Lily Potter running towards her, waving excitedly.

"You were really cute as the flower girl, Lily! It even fits your name," Galaxy commented, "And I remember when you visited too, but I think you spent more time with James. I also had fun when I visited your house last Christmas."

"I had a lot of fun visiting each of the houses and meeting my brothers' classmates, and seeing Rosie and Louis, too. Even Slytherin can't be that bad if people like you and Bianca are there, Serena. Can I pet your dog?" Lily asked, and Jessica answered before Serena could, jumping up and trying to reach Lily's nose to lick it.

"I learned a lot when you visited, too. I wasn't able to go to Defense Against the Dark Arts that week, since I was in the hospital wing then, but Bianca and Chocolate gave me their notes, and I also got to talk to you in person when you visited Slytherin Dungeon. I had read some things about werewolves in books, but it was helpful to talk to someone who knew what it was like," Serena admitted, "So we probably helped each other." Lily grinned, but then she looked a little worried.

"My brothers told me that Astronomy class is at night. What happens if you turn into a werewolf and then you have to go to class? Do they let you stay back in your room?" she wondered.

"That did happen once, and I chose to go to class, even in my wolf form. I wasn't able to use the telescope or write notes, but I'm glad I went that night. Professor Sparks talked about the moon, and while he didn't know why we transform with the full moon, I did learn other things. It also gave me the idea to keep a calendar of the moon phases, so I know when the transformations are coming," Serena said, "Have wizards ever wanted to go to the moon? Muggle astronaunts have been there, but wizards haven't. That's kind of strange."

"Wizards don't even have airplanes. Brooms can fly, but they don't go that high and they only really seat 1 or 2 people at a time. That would be neat if there was a broomstick that could fly lots of people at once through the air, or one that could go to the moon or other planets," Lily agreed.

"How would you breathe on a broomstick that goes into outer space, though? Muggle astronauts wear special suits that help them breathe when they go away from the Earth. Is there a spell for that?" Serena wondered.

"I don't know about breathing in outer space, but Daddy said he once ate some kind of weed that let him breathe underwater once. So maybe that weed would help you breathe in space, too," Lily suggested.

"That would be so cool! I hope I get to be an astronaut witch someday, that would be the most exciting adventure ever!" Galaxy giggled.


	5. Quidditch World Cup

Chapter 5: Quidditch World Cup

The day after the wedding, Serena and the others who were staying at the Burrow got up early in the morning. This was because they had a long walk to go to the portkey, which they would use to "teleport" to the Quidditch World Cup site, as Serena understood it. On the way, Rosie, who had been to the World Cup before, with her parents and Hugo, explained to Serena that it was not just a sporting event, but also a big gathering of wizards and witches from all over the world. Most people stayed in tents while they were there, often coming over a week ahead of time to claim a spot. Because of the timing of the wedding and birthday celebration, the Weasley family group would be arriving the morning of the day the game was scheduled to start.

As Serena and Rosie made to the top of the hill, Jessica prancing eagerly beside Serena's feet, they saw another family of wizards gathered around what looked like a broken TV set.

"Hi, Aunt Luna!" Lily squealed, hurrying forward to give a big hug to a blond witch who was wearing yellow robes. A man with light brown hair was with her, along with two little boys who looked like they were twins.

"That's the Scamander family. Luna is friends with Mum and Dad. That's her husband Rolf, and the younger boys are Lorcan and Lysander. They're the same age as Lily," James explained, he and Albus coming up behind Rosie and Serena. Serena stared at the broken TV, ignoring the new people.

"Is that thing really a Portkey? I thought it would look more like a key for a door," she commented.

"A Portkey can be anything, although I don't think you could turn a person or an animal into one. I think for this it's supposed to be something that muggles wouldn't want to just pick up and take home. This one is set to teleport us in a few minutes. We all have to touch it, even just a finger works," Rosie explained.

In a few minutes, as Rosie had said, everyone who was gathered there touched a finger to the old TV set. Serena was then startled by the feeling that she was flying, being pulled through the air by an invisible rope attached to her body. She landed with the others in a misty moor, where she could see many other wizards and witches gathered in the distance. As she had been told, it looked like there were tents set up, most of them looking like muggle tents but some of them had obviously magical touches.

"That was SOOOO amazing! Are we going to teleport like that on the way home, too?" Galaxy squealed excitedly.

"See, Scorpius? I bet we just traveled really far in just a few seconds! You can't tell me muggles do better than that!" Rebecca said.

"That's not what I mean. Just because wizards can do magic, it doesn't mean they can't be evil," Scorpius muttered.

The group, which included all the Weasley cousins, aunts, and uncles, as well as their guests, needed to use five tents to fit everyone, even considering the fact that the inside of the tents was much larger than one would think from looking at the outside. They were divided up so that each tent had six people. Serena and Galaxy, since they were Ron and Hermione's guests, stayed with them and their two children. The Scamander family was staying in a tent nearby, and Lily soon ran off to visit them, Galaxy following her eagerly.

That evening, it was time for the Quidditch World Cup to officially start, a match between the English and Irish teams. While Serena had seen Quidditch games played at school, she had never seen a game played by professionals before. One major difference was all the merchandise associated with both teams and the game in general, although that was certainly something professional Quidditch teams had in common with professional muggle sports teams. Serena and Galaxy had both been given Omnioculars as a present, and Galaxy was using them already to scan the crowd as they climbed the steps to their seats, which were in the Top Box, special for Ministry officials such as Ron and Hermione. Along the way, they passed by Andromeda and Libra Elm.

"How did they let that icky little mudblood in?! She's a werewolf! She'll bite everyone!" Andromeda blurted out, spotted Serena.

"You were the one who sent my dog into the Forbidden Forest in the first place!" Serena shot back, annoyed that of all the people they could run into in this big crowd, it would have to be Andromeda and her sister.

"Enough, Andromeda. Don't even bother speaking to someone like her," Libra said in a very snooty tone, and holding her nose in the air, she led Andromeda away.

"If it wasn't for their looks, I'd think those two were close relatives of Draco Malfoy, with the way they act," Ron commented, and Scorpius, who caught up with the Potter kids, overheard him.

"I wish Draco did look like Andromeda, then people wouldn't say I look like him," he sighed.

"You can't stop people from saying the truth. If you look like your father, then there's no way to change it, not unless you drink that stuff James gave you at the joke shop. And even that didn't last forever," Rebecca pointed out coldly as they took their seats.

"I know! I'm nothing more than a clone! I'm sure I'm evil too, just like the rest of my family!" Scorpius wailed, "I don't deserve to be sitting with Harry Potter and the Weasleys! Not after what the other Malfoys did to them!"

"So what if you look like him? A lot of people look like their parents, but it doesn't mean they're clones or that they have to be punished for bad things their parents did! The game's about to start, anyway, you'll miss it if you spend the whole time crying," James pointed out. The teams then came out, accompanied by their mascots, leprechauns for the Irish team and fairies for the English.

"Are ALL the creatures muggles put in myths and stories going to turn out to be real here in the wizard world?! I never knew there were real leprechauns, but I guess that's no weirder than me being a werewolf or a real witch," Serena commented.

"Maybe. I think a lot of the magical creatures in the muggle stories are based off of real magical animals, because the wizard world and the muggle world aren't really as separate as a lot of people think they are. We live in a lot of the same places, and while the Ministry tries to keep wizards and things a secret from muggles, they can't hide everything, especially when there are wizards and muggles who marry each other and live in the same neighborhoods," Rosie answered. The game began, both teams getting off to a fast-paced start, and for awhile, neither team had possession of the Quaffle long enough to even try to score any points.

"Will you ever want to be on the English team, James?" Scorpius asked.

"Of course I would. But there are also villains out there to fight, too. I might become an Auror like Dad," he bragged, "I'm sure whatever I'll do, I'll be the best at it!"

"And right now, you're the best at causing trouble. Professional Quidditch teams won't let you play if you just mess around and play pranks on the other players," Dominique pointed out, and Fred nodded seriously beside her. James was about to retort, but then the English team scored the first goal, and both cheers and boos rose up through the crowd.

"Aguamenti!" Lucy shouted, jumping up while the others were distracted by the game, and she spun in circles, spraying water out of her wand and drenching everyone who was near her. She was stopped abruptly as Fred managed to grab her by the wrist, nearly pulling her down.

"Stop it. Now. Or I'll give your wand to your father," he said very sternly, but unfortunately, her wand was in her other hand, and she let the last squirt of water out right in his face before finally stopping her aquatic prank.

"Be more like your namesake, Fred. Getting people wet doesn't hurt anything," James protested, as he had thought it was funny, even though he got squirted too.

"It was distracting me from watching the game," Fred muttered as he sat back down, sending glares at both Lucy and James. As the game went on, both teams keeping almost equal scores, Rebecca watched with amazement and excitement she felt about everything magical. She had seen the Potter kids and their cousins fly on brooms for fun before, but watching a real Quidditch game was something else.

"When I go to Hogwarts, I hope I can be on a Quidditch team there. You said you were on a team there, right, James?" Rebecca asked him eagerly.

"Yeah, but I might play against you if you get in Slytherin," he said, using a spooky tone on the last word, "You too, Lily and Hugo. Slytherin, the evil house."

"Why do you tell people they're going to be in Slytherin? I remember hearing you say that to Albus too, last year. Did you want to go there and were disappointed?" Rebecca asked him, completely not believing that any Hogwarts House could be "evil," not if it was part of that wonderful magic school.

"No way! The stupid Sorting Hat wanted to put me there for some reason, said I had lots of cunning and sneaky tendencies, but I told it to put me in Gryffindor like Dad and it finally did. I guess I never told you that, but I wrote it in the letter home, thought it was pretty stupid. Guess that old Hat was getting senile, trying to put James Potter in Slytherin," James answered.

"Ron sure got angry when he read your letter, James, I think he frightened your brother when he heard Ron's ranting," Hermione commented, and Ron muttered something that sounded like "I can't believe Louis was sorted there either."

"Is your House really that important, Uncle Harry?" Rebecca asked, confused as to why it sounded like Ron and James were making such a big deal out of it. There was nothing wrong with Louis, so far as she knew him, and wasn't Serena, Rosie's friend, a Slytherin?

"It is to some people, but don't worry about what James tells you. Go wherever fits you best; it doesn't matter to me where you're sorted. It's the same thing I told Al last year," Harry answered. Worries about Houses and Slytherin being scary were quickly driven out of Rebecca's mind as she went back to watching the game, which finally ended when the English seeker caught the snitch, winning the game for her team, with final scores of 300 to 150.


	6. Rebecca Rides the Hogwarts Express

Chapter 6: Rebecca Rides the Hogwarts Express

It was on September 1 that Rebecca finally got the thing that she had been wishing for ever since she had heard that there was a wizarding school out there. She was finally going to Hogwarts. She got on the train with James, Albus and Scorpius, remembering the letter she had gotten from her father a few days ago. Dudley had apologized for his parents' reactions, and that he wished he had the courage to break the news of Rebecca's magic to them earlier, instead of having it thrown at them with her Hogwarts letter. Rebecca had written back that she didn't care that they disapproved, she was a witch and better than them and they weren't going to stop her. She hadn't put this in her letter, but she felt like the Potters were her real family, because they were magic like her and thus could understand her better. However, she did wonder at Uncle Harry taking in Scorpius, who she felt was a crybaby and a goody-two-shoes. She did understand what it was like to be rejected by one's family, but she didn't understand why he worried so much about people thinking he was his father, as he made it very plain to her that his values were different than those held by the other Malfoys. On the train, she sat in a compartment with James, who had invited his friends Galaxy and Scorpius. Albus had gone off to see that big girl Rebecca remembered seeing at Uncle Harry's birthday party, the one who she had been told was related to real giants.

"I'm finally going! To a place where I can learn to be an even more powerful witch! I don't care that my grandparents think it's freaky, they're just jealous. I'm with my real family. That's you, James, and your siblings and parents," Rebecca said, grinning at the wand that was in her hands, eager to try it out as soon as possible.

"What about your mother?" Scorpius asked, "How does she feel about you being a witch? You talk a lot about your father and his parents, but you never said how your mother feels about it. Doesn't she miss you when you're at Mr. Potter's house?"

"She died when I was a baby," Rebecca replied curtly, and then she smirked at him. "What about you? You always complain about your father being evil but what about your mother? You never mention her either." Tears came to Scorpius's eyes as he glared at Rebecca.

"I haven't seen her since last year. I love being with Mr. Potter but I still miss her. I'm glad to be away from my evil father but I don't know why she let him disown me. I always thought she loved me, even when I fought with Father and disagreed with him," Scorpius began sobbing, "I just wonder if something bad happened to her."

"She's probably alright. I'm sure your dad would mention it in a letter or something, or else if there was something really weird, the Daily Prophet would mention it, since your family is well-known enough," Galaxy reassured him, "I thought Mr. Potter was trying to contact him, and he works at the Ministry."

"I heard Dad say that Draco wasn't responding to him, but let's think about something else. Since you aren't using your family owl anymore, would you like to get a pet of your own? I bet Dad could pay for it. Maybe you could get a cat that looks like a lion so everyone knows you're a Gryffindor," James suggested, trying to change the subject.

"How would you get him a pet now? Why didn't you say anything when we bought my little Tabitha?" Rebecca exclaimed, "I thought Uncle Harry said you weren't allowed to go to that magic village."

"Because I just thought of it right now! I was trying to make him feel better because you made him start crying about his Mum!" James snapped at her, annoyed that she had mentioned his being banned from Hogsmeade.

"Mr. Potter is so popular and famous, I bet no one would complain if he took Scorpius from school on the weekend to visit a place he could get a pet," Galaxy grinned, but Scorpius looked shocked.

"I couldn't ask him to do that for me! Not after he's let me stay in his home and done so much for me!" he blurted out, although James's idea of getting a lion-like cat was tempting.

"Why are you so nice to him, James? Maybe Scorpius wants to be punished," Rebecca smirked.

"Why would anyone WANT a punishment?! That's just stupid! And I think you're just looking for excuses to make him cry again!" James snapped in retort. For Scorpius's part, it wasn't that he wanted to be punished, but more that he was afraid to ask too much of the Potters when he still felt like he owed it to Harry to make up for the way Draco had behaved in the past. The compartment door opened, interrupting James and Rebecca's argument. A boy with a strong physical resemblance to Severus Snape was standing in the doorway, an expectant look on his face.

"Will you let me join you? My cousin told me to leave her alone, and most of the other compartments are full," the boy said, smiling when he noticed there would be enough room for him, if this group would allow it.

"Sure! We always have room for new friends!" Galaxy chirped, "What's your name? I'm Galaxy Baghill, and these are James Potter, Scorpius Malfoy and Rebecca Dursley."

"I'm Severus Prince, and thank you for making room for me," the new boy said cheerfully, taking the empty spot next to Galaxy, "This is my first time going to Hogwarts, but Dad told me a lot about it, and my cousin, Daisy, started last year. Do you know her?"

"Do you mean Daisy Puff? I see her in my Transfiguration class, but she doesn't really like to talk to me. Why would she kick you out of her compartment if she's your cousin, though? That's kind of mean," Galaxy commented.

"She thinks I'm annoying, I guess," Severus sighed, "She says I'm too loud and that I talk too much." He then stopped and stared at James, a big grin on his face. "James Potter?! Are you really the son of Harry Potter?!"

"That's me! And I'm just as great, too!" James bragged, "I may not have defeated Voldemort, but I'm sure I'll have even better adventures! I saved the headmistress's pet toad last year, too."

"You did? That's amazing! And so kind of you, too, rescuing cute little animals!" Severus gushed, and Rebecca couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"You need to stay away from Scorpius here, Severus, or else you'll get sucked into the James Potter Fanclub," she commented.

"What's wrong with being my fan?! I think you're just jealous," James pouted, "You just WISH you had as many fans as I do."

"You just go on believing that. I can still become a powerful witch without having a fanclub following me around," Rebecca retorted, "Maybe I should try my first spell on you and see how many people love you once you have antlers sprouting out of your head."

"Go ahead and do that. Then I'll just look more like my namesake. Did you know the original James Potter was a deer animagus?" James smirked, and he stuck his tongue out at Rebecca.

"So what? I don't need to use my family to look good, I can be strong and powerful on my own. I don't care what my grandparents are like, I'm better than them. Having a famous dad doesn't automatically make you a star," Rebecca argued.

"Have you ever tried Bertie Bott's Beans, Rebecca? The snack cart is here, everyone," Galaxy interrupted, trying to distract Rebecca and James from fighting, as they had both looked ready to pull their wands on each other.

"Actually, I have tried them. I don't like them, though, who'd want candy that tastes like barf and stuff anyway?" Rebecca snorted.

"Aww, I think it's fun to taste all the different flavors, even if some of them are kind of yucky," Galaxy said, "But I guess not everyone likes adventure. Have you tasted any of the other wizard candies? Are there any you DO like?"

"James did tell me about the Chocolate Frog cards," Rebecca remembered, "Maybe now I can start collecting my own and I can show my dad all the pictures of the famous witches and wizards." Galaxy agreed that she liked those too, and she and Rebecca bought enough for everyone in the compartment. Rebecca opened hers and stared at it, then laughed out loud.

"How'd you get on here, Severus? This guy looks like you, but with a different last name. Is this a card from the future when you're a grown-up? Can wizards send candy back in time? Will you change your name to Severus Snape in the future?" she blurted out, showing everyone the card.

"That's my cousin, not me. He died 20 years ago, like it says on the card, but he really is my cousin. Daisy's too," Severus explained.

"That sounds weird, but some families are complicated that way," Rebecca shrugged, "It's pretty obvious you're related to him. Do you think you'll like Potions at Hogwarts too? It says that was the subject he taught the most."

"I might. I don't know what subjects I'll be good at yet, but I hope I get to have fun no matter what happens," Severus said with a grin.

"I agree! Having fun no matter what you do is always important!" Galaxy nodded. Rebecca silently agreed, she was certain that Hogwarts would be very exciting.


	7. Changes

Chapter 7: Changes

As the returning students entered the Great Hall, awaiting the Sorting of the new first-years, Bianca noticed that there were four new faces at the staff table.

"I wonder why there are so many new professors. Did a bunch of them retire over the summer? Professor Sparks is gone, he wasn't THAT old and he seemed interested by your questions about the Moon, Serena. I thought at least he would've stayed," she said.

"He was killed. Don't you get the Daily Prophet delivered to your house? And so was Ashley Smooge, that was also in the news. At least two of those new people must be replacing them," Serena answered bluntly, "My parents are very curious about this magic world I'm now a part of, so we subscribe to the Daily Prophet as well as the regular newspapers."

"Don't they get scared of the owls? I've heard that some muggles don't like it when owls drop off letters and things," Bianca said.

"Not my parents. They love all kinds of new things, and the owls delivering the post is just one more part of the magic world they're curious to explore," Serena said.

Serena and Bianca went to the Slytherin table and they didn't have very long to wait until the new first-year students filed in, led by Professor Hagrid. The hat, which was placed on the stool by Amanda Quigley, began to sing. This time, instead of just describing the houses and their favored characteristics, the Sorting Hat warned the students that divisive forces were approaching, and that despite being in different houses, all Hogwarts students must band together in times of trouble. Listening to the song, Rebecca wondered if the Sorting Hat somehow knew about the prophecy she heard Teddy Lupin make on Christmas, about the four houses fighting each other. However, the Sorting began as usual, and Rebecca's name was near the beginning of the list.

"Rebecca Dursley!" Amanda called, and the hat fell over Rebecca's blond curly head. It shouted "SLYTHERIN!" without hesitation, and Rebecca happily went over to her new table.

"Ruby Gorgok!" Soon after Rebecca was sorted, a girl who was obviously related to goblins had the hat put over head. She was extremely short, with a long hooked nose and silver braids, and she was also sorted into Slytherin. Severus Prince, the boy James and Rebecca had met on the train, was surprisingly put in Gryffindor, and so was a girl named Sparkle Lights. Throughout the feast, many students wondered who the new faces at the staff table were. After the feast, many eyes stared expectantly at Samantha Rain, who was sure to make introductions. There had also been hints of something else exciting this year, something that would be a special treat for the older students.

"Life is all about beginnings and endings. I am sad to say, two of our professors died over the summer, Professor Orion Sparks, who taught Astronomy, and the Ancient Runes professor, Ashley Smooge. Two of our other staff members, Sally McDonald and Jack Durnham, have gone on a very long trip and will need replacements during that time. So let us welcome Pansy Parkinson, who will be teaching Astronomy, Diamond Flannery, the new Arithmancy professor, Sapphire Ferny, who will be teaching Ancient Runes and finally the new Muggle Studies professor, Amber McAngus," Samantha announced.

"On another note, I am pleased to finally open the Hogwarts Recreation Room. It is on the 4th floor, and will be available during your regular free time hours. There are games, books, and some refreshments in this room, and I hope that it will make it easier for students in different houses to get to know each other better. I'm sure it will be a fun and relaxing place to visit as well; just make sure you don't neglect your homework," Samantha said with a bit of a giggle. "Finally, the Triwizard Tournament will be held at Beauxbatons this year at the end of October. During that time, I will accompany the selected students on the trip, and that means Amanda Quigley will serve as Headmistress for the students who stay behind. As is usual, only students who will be 17 or older by October 30 are allowed to compete, and I trust the Heads of House will each make their selections wisely. Now, off you go, and have an exciting year of new things to learn!" As the students filed out of the doors, following the prefects, Rebecca was approached by Andromeda Elm.

"So you're Dursley. That doesn't sound like any wizard name I know of. Who are your parents?" she demanded, "You better not be another filthy mudblood like that freaky Tippet girl."

"My parents are Dudley and Angelica Dursley, but who cares if they're not wizards? I'm still a witch, and I'm related to Harry Potter, too! What the &% is a 'mudblood' anyway? Is that some weird word for a mixed-race person?" Rebecca snapped back.

"It means someone with muggle parents. No magic blood. People like that should not be allowed at Hogwarts, much less in Slytherin. And I don't care if you're related to Harry Potter, his mother was a mudblood herself, like you. Get out of Slytherin and into some other house before I kick you out," Andromeda snarled.

"That's enough, Andromeda. If you continue to spout hate speech and bully Miss Dursley like that, I will have to take points from you," Cupcake warned, coming between Andromeda and Rebecca.

"Shut up, you stupid blood traitor," Andromeda muttered, but she hurried away from Rebecca anyway, looking for her sister. Cupcake began walking alongside Rebecca as they headed for the Slytherin common room together.

"I'm sorry you had to meet up with that kind of prejudice already. How are you liking Hogwarts so far? Aside from there being some rather silly and bigoted people here, of course. But I guess there are muggles like that too, so you get good and bad traits in every population," Cupcake sighed.

"I think Hogwarts is as amazing as I heard it was! I always wanted to come here since Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny told me about it. So I'm glad to be here, no matter what that girl says. I think she's just jealous that I'm related to Harry Potter," Rebecca replied confidently.

"If she gives you any more trouble, or if you just have any questions about wizards and witches, just ask me. I'm Cupcake Quigley, Slytherin prefect, and you're always welcome to come to me for help," Cupcake said.

"Cupcake? That sounds yummy! But I wouldn't try to eat you, don't worry!" Rebecca joked.

"I don't think I'd let anyone try to eat me," Cupcake said with a roll of her eyes, "You know, you're not the only one here in Slytherin with non-magical parents. Would you like to meet Serena Tippet? She started at Hogwarts last year, so she might be able to help you with some things too."

"I know who she is, she has a very cute dog but I think her dog is friendlier than she is," Rebecca answered, "I met her during the summer because we were both at Uncle Harry's birthday party, and she went to the Quidditch World Cup with us, too. Did you go there too? I heard that Quidditch is popular with wizards and witches, and there were a lot of people in that stadium."

"Actually, I did go to the Quidditch World Cup this summer, with my mother and little brother, of course. Did you enjoy watching the game? After you learn how to fly, you might be able to join the team next year if you'd like. I'm sorry, but first year students aren't usually allowed to join unless they show exceptional talent. But you never know. I'm the Quidditch Captain for the Slytherin team starting this year, and I don't mind letting first years on the team if they're good enough," Cupcake said.

"Really? You'd let me join the team right away?" Rebecca asked eagerly.

"We'll see. You should see how you do in Flying class first before deciding, though," Cupcake warned her. They arrived at the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room, and Cupcake led the new students in, telling them that the password was "crystal." Rebecca found to her pleasant surprise that her suitcase and nightclothes were all ready for her in the girls' dormitory. Andromeda suddenly burst into the room.

"You just wait. The Chamber of Secrets will be opened soon, and all you mudbloods will regret ever coming to Hogwarts," she sneered.

"Uncle Harry already killed that basilisk. You're way behind the times," Rebecca retorted.

"Basilisks aren't the only things that can hurt stupid little mudbloods like you," Andromeda snapped. Cupcake then appeared and grabbed Andromeda by the arm.

"What did I say about bullying the new students and calling them names? 10 points off, and it'll be more if I catch you doing that again," she warned, dragging Andromeda out. She then came back in, giving a sympathetic look to Rebecca.

"I'm sorry you had to meet her so soon. She caused a lot of trouble last year too, I guess she and her sister are too stuck in the old ways. But things are safe here for all wizards and witches, no matter who their parents are," Cupcake reassured her, before leaving to go to her own dorm. Rebecca rolled her eyes.

"Andromeda's just jealous that I'm related to Harry Potter," she muttered to herself.


	8. The Monster Strikes

Chapter 8: The Monster Strikes

Unfortunately, Andromeda's threat of the return of Slytherin's Heir did have a grain of truth behind it, and Rebecca found that out very painfully on her first Friday at Hogwarts. The morning started out quite innocently for Rebecca. Entering the common room rather early that morning, she noticed Fenella, a second-year girl, had a very interesting pet. She had a snake coiled on her lap, and it seemed like she was speaking to it in a strange, hissing voice. Rebecca gasped in excited surprise.

"Are you like Dr. Doolittle?! Can you talk to all animals like that?!" she shrieked.

"No, just snakes," Fenella replied, reverting to her regular, Welsh-accented voice, though it was in a whisper, almost as if she didn't want anyone else to hear her, and she did look rather frightened to see Rebecca. "I'm a Parselmouth. It's a very rare ability that some wizards and witches have, and a lot of people think it's a Dark Art. It's really not, I would never tell my Edward to hurt anyone, but please don't go shouting about it. A few other people know, but I don't want to be accused of practicing the Dark Arts."

"That's stupid if they'd hate you for it. I think they're just jealous, that's a really cool ability!" Rebecca exclaimed, "That's just like my stupid muggle relatives who're scared of me because I'm a witch."

"You can't always blame muggles for fearing us," Cupcake said gently. She had come into the room while Rebecca and Fenella were talking. "There have been some pretty bad wizards and witches who have done nasty things to muggles."

"If those muggles were anything like my relatives, then they probably deserved it," Rebecca argued. Cupcake shook her head sadly.

"That's not necessarily the case. In most cases, muggle victims of wizards using the Dark Arts are innocents who did not deserve to be harmed in that way. And there are some wizards, like Lord Voldemort, who wanted to enslave all muggles. Would you want that to happen?" she challenged, "I understand if you have relatives that don't understand you, but I'm sure you met some very nice muggles elsewhere who you would be horrified to see hurt or dead, especially by a method they wouldn't even be able to see coming." Rebecca shook her head in disbelief. Magic was a wonderful, amazing thing! There was no way it could be used in such an evil way! She was sure that her Uncle Harry had eliminated all the evil in the wizarding world when he killed Lord Voldemort!

"You're just trying to scare me away! You don't want me to learn magic! You want me to think it's evil! I thought you were on my side!" Rebecca shouted, suddenly lashing out at Cupcake.

"I don't want you to leave at all! I'm just trying to warn you that sometimes people use magic to do bad things!" Cupcake pleaded, unsure why Rebecca had turned on her like that.

"You can't make me fear magic! I can see through you! You're just like Andromeda!" Rebecca retorted, and then she punched Cupcake's startled face and ran off towards the Great Hall. No one's going to stop me from learning magic! I'll become a powerful witch and show them all, Rebecca thought angrily to herself as she entered the Great Hall. She felt even more eager for Potions class, which she hadn't attended yet, especially since she heard that Professor Sprite had muggle parents too. Maybe she'll understand what it's like to feel superior to stupid non-magical relatives, Rebecca told herself as she ate her breakfast, having made sure to pick a seat that was far away from Andromeda or her sister Libra. In Potions class, she ended up pairing up with Severus Prince, who she had met on the train. The class went well for her, though she still made a few mistakes, and Severus invited her to play a game with him and James Potter in the Hogwarts Recreation Room after lunch. Unfortunately, her day took a turn for the worse when she and Severus left the classroom. As she went down the hallway, something struck her in the face, knocking her to the ground.

"Who did that?! Who just hit me?!" she yelped, sitting up and looking around frantically for the invisible assailant. She was hit again, this time in the stomach, and Severus ran in front of her. He pulled out his wand but was knocked back into Rebecca. As the attack continued, Bianca, who was heading to the Slytherin Common Room to get a textbook, saw Rebecca and Severus being beaten up, though she could not see the attacker either. She screamed and ran back towards the stairs, crying for Professor Quigley. As she ran towards the Great Hall, she nearly crashed into Amber McAngus, who was coming the opposite way.

"Please! I need to find Professor Quigley! There's an invisible person attacking two students!" she gasped out.

"Is there, now? Sounds like a Slytherin trick to me. Let me guess, is the 'invisible person' right behind you and are you going to have them attack me, too?" Amber sneered.

"No! It's real! I don't even know what the invisible thing is, just that it was attacking Severus Prince and Rebecca Dursley!" Bianca protested, completely confused as to why Amber wasn't helping. Pansy also came along, and she shook her head at Amber.

"Shouldn't you be rushing to the rescue of your precious little Gryffindor and that mudblood? How unGryffindor of you to not jump to the rescue," Pansy commented.

"How dare you use that word! I'm sure you're behind it! Slytherins are always causing trouble at Hogwarts!" Amber snarled, turning on Pansy. Luckily, both Professor Quigley and Headmistress Rain appeared, but Amber spoke before Bianca could.

"The Slytherins are causing trouble again, I'm sure of it, Samantha. The mini-Slytherin here is trying to trick me into walking into a so-called "invisible attack," and then Pansy called me a...it's not even repeatable!" Amber ranted, "But you know what they think of people like us!"

"I'm NOT trying to trick anyone! There really is an invisible attacker near the Potions classroom! It was beating up two first-year students! You have to come help them!" Bianca sobbed, still not understanding why Amber thought she was trying to pull a trick.

"I understand. Thank you for telling me, Bianca. Let's all go down there together and see what's going on," Samantha agreed.

"With all due respect, Headmistress, that girl is a Slytherin, and as such, can't be trusted. What if she just wants to attack you, just because your parents weren't magical?" Amber asked.

"I'll take that chance, Amber. Remember, we are supposed to be encouraging interhouse cooperation, and that kind of attitude is not helping the students learn to get along with each other," Samantha reminded her. She, Bianca and Amanda set off for the dungeons, leaving Amber and Pansy behind.

"I'm coming too! I'll prove to you the Slytherins are behind it!" Amber called, chasing after them. Meanwhile, Amethyst, who had been cleaning up in the Potions classroom, came out for lunch. It was then she saw Severus and Rebecca's battered, unconscious bodies on the floor, and horrible words written on the wall in what looked like blood.

"No...it can't be happening again," Amethyst whimpered to herself, before she, too, fainted right there in the hallway. Samantha, Amber, Bianca and Amanda arrived in the hallway. They saw the two students who had been attacked and Amethyst, who was starting to wake up again. And then Samantha and Amanda both looked at the words and gasped.

"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Death to Mudbloods," Amber read aloud, spitting the last word, "Now tell me your Slytherins aren't behind this, Quigley. That Chamber was created by your precious house's founder."

"The monster in the Chamber, which was a basilisk, was killed 25 years ago, by Harry Potter. Also, Mr. Prince and Miss Dursley aren't petrified or dead, someone or some creature obviously attacked and beat them up. And don't think for a minute that I wanted this to happen. Whoever did this, when they are found, that person is going to punished severely. That person will be lucky if they're not expelled," Amanda retorted coldly.

"It's still probably someone in your house. Certainly no Gryffindor would do such a thing," Amber asserted.

"Actually, last time, it was a Gryffindor who opened the Chamber, although she was being controlled by Lord Voldemort's old diary. So we don't want to rule out any students based on what house they're in," Samantha pointed out, "And as Amanda said, this is obviously not the work of a basilisk. Either there is some other creature in the Chamber that Harry missed, or someone put a new monster in. Or else the perpetrator is purposely trying to frighten people by attacking with an invisibility cloak or spell and then just writing ominous messages on the wall."

As one might expect, when Bianca went back to the Great Hall for lunch, the mysterious attacks were a popular topic of conversation for the students. Some of them felt that they knew what might have happened to poor Rebecca and Severus, and Libra Elm had a specific perpetrator in mind.

"It has to be Fenella Oak," she stated, "She's a Parselmouth. The Chamber of Secrets can only be opened by a Parselmouth."

"It's more likely to be you than her! She's never showed any hatred of muggleborns, whereas you and your bratty little sister parade it around like you're proud to be bigots!" Cupcake snapped.

"Did you see who did it, Bianca?" Serena asked, rolling her eyes at Libra's foolish accusations. She had never heard Fenella say anything that pointed to potential anti-muggle or muggleborn beliefs. Also, she trusted that Bianca wasn't lying about what happened to Rebecca and Severus, and if what she said was true, then it was obviously the work of something other than a basilisk.

"No, I didn't. I'm sorry. It looked like bruises were just appearing on their bodies for no reason and that the air was making them fall down. But I know it had to be some invisible creature or person who was hitting them," Bianca whimpered, and she began to cry. "I'm afraid you'll be attacked too, since you're a muggleborn. And you won't even be able to see it coming!" Serena nodded, she wasn't sure what to say to reassure Bianca. Because the way it was, it didn't seem like there WAS a way to avoid being attacked. Danger had come to Hogwarts once again, even though Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters were all either dead or in Azkaban.


	9. Quidditch Tryouts

Chapter 9: Quidditch Tryouts

Despite the mysterious attack on Severus and Rebecca, life at Hogwarts didn't change that much. Quidditch tryouts were held during the second week of classes, all four houses gaining new Quidditch players. Rebecca didn't try out, since Slytherin tryouts were held before the first years could learn to fly yet, but she watched them anyway, curious to be able to join the team someday. Serena also watched, along with Bianca, who shouted cheers for everyone, even Andromeda.

"Do you think I would be a good Quidditch player? I wish there could be a Hogwarts cheerleading team and I could be part of that, but flying around and playing the game looks like fun too," Bianca asked Serena.

"I didn't notice you having any big problems in Flying class last year. If you really want to, then it's your decision to join the team. You'll have to hurry, though, Cupcake might let you try out if you run down to the field and ask her right now," Serena answered with a shrug. She wasn't interested in playing the game itself, though she did like flying. Not only did Serena lack an interest in joining a team sport, she also wasn't sure what would happen if there was a game during the full moon and she transformed into a werewolf in mid-air. She supposed she wouldn't be able to hold onto the broom anymore, and that she would go crashing to the ground and have to be taken to Madame Pomfrey, which was something she would obviously want to avoid. It was enough for Serena to have fun flying on her own and to watch the other students play the game.

"I think Andromeda's going to be the new Seeker," Bianca commented, "She caught the Snitch before Moondust did."

"Why did Cupcake even let her compete?! Isn't she afraid Andromeda's just going to get in a fight with Louis Weasley and steal his broom again? Although it might be funny to see if she takes orders from someone who she calls a 'blood traitor,' whatever that means. I know it has something to do with that 'blood purity' stuff Andromeda and her sister believe in, but it sounds like she wants revenge on Cupcake for stealing her blood or something," Serena laughed derisively.

"Do you want to see the other houses' tryouts too, if we're allowed? Aren't your friends Rosie and Galaxy trying out for their teams too?" Bianca asked, changing the subject slightly.

"If we're allowed, maybe. But I'm sure I can meet with them in the new Recreation Room and talk there," Serena answered. Bianca suddenly shrieked, having felt something touch her legs, and then Serena felt it too. It felt a lot like a person's hair! Serena looked down and saw a little brown-haired girl in dirty robes crawling through the stands.

"What are you doing down there, Sparkle? Don't you want to sit on the bench with us and watch the tryouts?" Bianca asked, remembering having seen her get sorted into Gryffindor a few weeks ago.

"How weird of you to be friendly to me. Are you sure you aren't going to be a sneaky Slytherin and trick me?" Sparkle asked warily, popping up to look at Serena and Bianca.

"Well, if we WERE going to trick you, it wouldn't be very sneaky of us to say so. You're the one crawling through the stands like a spy in an action movie," Serena pointed out.

"Action movie? I didn't think you snooty Slytherins ever watched movies, unless you have magic ones too," Sparkle said, surprised.

"I've never heard of any magic movies. I've only watched movies made by what wizards call muggle technology," Serena replied, confused as to why Sparkle assumed she wouldn't have watched any regular movies. Was she assuming that there were no muggleborns in Slytherin at all?

"You can't be...you've got to have at least one magical parent! I thought people like me weren't allowed in Slytherin!" Sparkle exclaimed, staring at Serena in disbelief.

"No, it's true. I'm what wizards call 'muggleborn.' There may have been a rule that didn't allow muggleborn wizards and witches in Slytherin in the past, but obviously that rule has been changed, otherwise I would be in a different house. I'm not the only Slytherin like that either, there's a girl in your year who also doesn't have any magical ancestors. Have you met Rebecca Dursley yet?" Serena asked, thinking that Sparkle must have had Potions with Rebecca so far.

"I did, but I thought they let her in because she's related to Harry Potter, since she's always bragging about that," Sparkle answered.

"So do you want to watch the tryouts with us? If you don't know about Quidditch yet, we could tell you about it," Bianca offered.

"How do I know you won't lie and tell me something stupid?" Sparkle asked warily.

"You don't. But that goes for anything anyone tells you, not just Slytherins. Why are you even talking to us if you think everything we say is a lie?" Serena challenged her.

"Because you talked to me first! Your sneaky blond friend tried to trick me into sitting with her, and then she's probably going to push me off the stands or tell me fake things about Quidditch to make me look stupid in Flying class tomorrow! I know how Slytherins are because I read about it in a book, and it was written by one of our teachers so it's gotta be true!" Sparkle ranted before turning away and climbing out of the stands, hurrying back to the castle.

"One of our teachers wrote a book that made her scared of Slytherins?" Bianca asked confusedly, "Why didn't she tell us what the book was, or who wrote it?"

"The bigger question is why she was sneaking around in the stands in the first place if she hates Slytherin so much. Why would she want to see our tryouts? Does she think she's being a spy or something?" Serena grumbled.

"I don't know. But if a teacher wrote the book, then you can't blame her for believing it," Bianca shrugged.

A few days later, after all four houses had their Quidditch tryouts, Serena, Rosie and Galaxy met in the Hogwarts Recreation Room.

"I got on the team! I'm the new Chaser!" Galaxy squealed excitedly when she arrived in the room and spotted Rosie and Serena waiting for her, "What about you, Rosie?"

"I'm the new Beater," Rosie replied shyly, yet proudly, "Daisy Puff also got on the team, she's the Seeker. I heard Andromeda bragging about being on the Slytherin team, too. Is that true, Serena?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I saw the tryouts and it did look like she did well at it, but I don't think she's going to be able to get along with the other team members. She always fights with Cupcake, too, and she's the captain," Serena said, "But Diana Goyle is our Keeper, and she's usually good at keeping Andromeda in line."

"Maybe playing Quidditch will help Andromeda learn to be nice to people and work on a team better," Galaxy suggested optimistically.

"Who's the Gryffindor Seeker?" Serena asked, curious since Galaxy hadn't mentioned it, "I thought you might try out for that position since you're short."

"David Longbottom. He's always causing trouble too, like Andromeda. Either Quidditch will help him too or else he might just be even more annoying," Galaxy said. She then noticed Melissa Blips come into the Recreation Room, carrying a scroll with her.

"You're from Slytherin, right? Do you want to read the story I wrote? It's about Severus Snape, and he used to be in your house," Melissa offered, addressing Serena.

"So? I can guess what it's going to be about. I heard you talking about it in Transfiguration, and I'm not interested in reading a made-up love story between you and a guy who died a long time ago. Why did you fall in love with a dead guy, anyway?" Serena asked scornfully, "You never even met him outside of talking to that portrait."

"People can admire and even fall in love with people they've never met before, especially if they're famous celebrities," Rosie pointed out, thinking about how her Aunt Ginny first fell in love with Uncle Harry from just hearing about how he was the "Boy Who Lived."

"You understand! You understand how I feel about Sevvie-poo!" Melissa squealed, dropping her scroll and grabbing Rosie in a big hug, "Everyone's always mean and says things like that Slytherin girl did but you understand me!" Rosie was shocked and she blushed slightly, unsure if she should just let herself be hugged or push Melissa away. Serena rolled her eyes but stayed silent, still wondering how someone could have so much affection for someone they had never met before.

"Can I read your story?" Galaxy asked, and without waiting for a response, she picked up the scroll and began reading. Melissa watched her expectantly for awhile, Serena and Rosie also curious what Galaxy's response would be.

"The story's okay, but it's kind of weird to read about Snape being in love with someone named Melanie Bleeper. I always heard he was in love with Lily, who was Harry Potter's mum," she commented.

"I wish he was in love with me, though. That's why I wrote a story about it," Melissa sighed wistfully, "I'm going to share it with his portrait, and then maybe Melanie's story can become reality for me." She then left for the Great Hall, her head filled with romantic thoughts about the famous snarky Potions Master.


	10. Selections and Accusations

Chapter 10: Selections and Accusations

As Professor Rain had mentioned during her speech at the start of the school year, the Triwizard Tournament was going to be held at Beauxbatons this year, and eligible students from each house were going to be selected to make the very special trip to France. A few days before Halloween, it was finally time to announce who had been chosen. Also, there was someone new at the staff table, someone Rebecca thought she recognized.

"Is that the woman who gave me my wand?" she wondered, seeing who she thought was Padma Patil.

"Now I'm sure many of you have been anticipating this moment, especially those of you who are of age. The 12 students who are going to visit Beauxbatons for the Triwizard Tournament have been selected. I will announce the names of those selected students, and then I will also tell all of you about the changes in staffing that are going to take place while I am at Beauxbatons, as I will be accompanying the selected students. First, from Gryffindor, are Mortimer and Basil Binks, and Laura Davidson. From Hufflepuff Professor Sanders has selected Molly Weasley, Jessica Blips, and Casey Wellington. Professor Sprite has chosen Ravenclaw students Amy Zimmerman, Peter Pudding and Rachael Bennington. Finally, the selected Slytherin students are Maria Flint, Jeremy Jumper and Aquarius Sparks."

"No! You forgot my sister! How could you?! You have no right to reject my sister, YOU FILTHY MUDBLOOD!" Andromeda screamed, jumping up from her seat. Libra put a hand on her and pushed her down.

"Let it go, Andromeda. If Professor Quigley didn't select me, then I'm not going. It's not something worth screaming about," Libra said firmly. Other students could be heard whispering and talking to each other, some of them obviously horrified by what Andromeda had just called Professor Rain, and Scorpius could be heard shouting at Andromeda too, accusing her of sounding like his "evil father."

"SILENCE!" Samantha shouted, using the Sonorus charm to amplify her voice over the students' arguing. "I wasn't finished explaining about what would happen while I am gone."

"Then you shouldn't reject my sister," Andromeda muttered angrily to herself.

"Professor Quigley was the one making the selections for Slytherin, not Professor Rain," Libra reminded her.

"As I was saying, I am going to Beauxbatons with the selected students. In my absence, Amanda Quigley will be the temporary Headmistress. Pansy Parkinson, who has started teaching Astronomy this year, will be the Head of Slytherin until I come back. Also, I would like to introduce you to Parvati Patil, who will be teaching Transfiguration until Professor Quigley is able to resume her usual duties," Samantha explained. Rebecca stared at Parvati in confusion and then realized that she was probably the sister of the person who she had seen at the place where she got her wand, given that they looked so similar to each other and had the same surname.

The school year continued as usual in Professor Rain's absence, and on November 17 Gryffindor and Slytherin competed in the first Quidditch game of the year. It was also Galaxy's first time playing for the school, and she was very excited about it. The day after the game, she met with Bunny, Rosie and Serena in the Recreation Room to discuss what had happened in the game, which Gryffindor had won. As Serena hadn't been able to watch the game due to the fact that the day of the match was also a full moon night, she had asked her friends to tell her what happened, especially since Galaxy was in the game herself.

"Well, our team won, but it was very close," Galaxy said, "Your new Slytherin Keeper is very good, you know, Diana Goyle? But I also got a few shots past her, and so did James. It took a long time, though, because Andromeda and David spent a lot of time doing fancy flying moves and taunting each other, and both Captain Quigley and Captain Weasley were yelling at them to search for the Snitch. It was actually pretty funny, they were doing all these goofy twirls around each other. I think they were showing off or something," Galaxy explained, "But they both finally started looking for the Snitch and David spotted it first. Andromeda almost caught up to him, but he caught it first."

"I also saw what they were doing. I think David and Andromeda might be replaced next year, it sounded like both captains were pretty upset with them. Fred's always been very serious about Quidditch, and he also doesn't really like it when people just goof around," Rosie added.

"That sounds like Andromeda, she did that kind of stuff in Flying class last year too," Serena said, shaking her head. It was then that Electra O'Blarney charged into the Recreation Room and skidded to a stop.

"Another student was attacked!" she shouted breathlessly, "It was Elizabeth Topper this time! I heard her screaming and then saw her lying in the hallway! If I saw who attacked her, then I could've fought them! A true Gryffindor never runs away from any opponent, even an invisible one, but I couldn't find them."

"Maybe Scorpius is behind it," David Longbottom suggested, a rather malicious smirk on his face. "His grandfather, Lucius Malfoy, was the one who started the attacks back in 1992, from what I heard. He planted the diary on Ginny Weasley because he wanted to make her kill all the muggleborns, and I bet Scorpius wants to do the same thing."

"Stop it! Just stop it! I know you've been accusing him of the attacks, and he would never do something like that! The only way he could be behind is if someone else was controlling him!" Galaxy shouted, jumping up to face David.

"What about an Invisibility Cloak? Could the attacker be using one of those?" suggested Rebecca, who had been listening to the conversation, wondering if she would be attacked again. "I saw James using one last summer, and you couldn't see him at all when he was wearing it."

"Scorpius probably stole it from James, then!" David burst out, "He's planning to...get that out of my face, Baghill! I'm sure you wouldn't want that muggleborn Slytherin friend of yours to be attacked by the evil Malfoy boy." Galaxy had stepped closer to him and had pointed her wand in his face.

"I don't care if the prefects drag me out, if you accuse Scorpius one more time I'm going to hex you," she hissed angrily, "It's your fault he cries all the time about being evil."

"It couldn't be Scorpius anyway, he's too goody-goody and wimpy to attack people. I bet it's Andromeda. She told me on my first night here that the Chamber of Secrets was going to be opened soon, so it's probably her. Maybe she stole James's cloak or something," Rebecca suggested.

"That makes sense," Rosie agreed, "It probably is a person under an Invisibility Cloak, but I don't think James would have anything to do with it. It's not his anyway, it belongs to Uncle Harry, and I don't think he took it to school with him."

While David had accused Scorpius of being the mysterious attacker and others believed it was someone using an Invisibility Cloak, Elizabeth Topper had her own ideas about who had attacked her. Though she could not exactly see who or what had been beating her up in the hallway, she was convinced it was the work of Ruby Gorgok.

"I didn't actually see her, but I'm sure it was her! She's part-goblin, and goblins are evil! They always are in books and movies, and she even has an evil hooked nose," Elizabeth explained to Amanda Quigley, who was in the hospital wing with Hagrid, Bridget O'Blarney and Samantha Rain.

"How do you know it was her if you couldn't see her? I don't want to accuse someone without good proof, and her being part-goblin and the shape of her nose isn't really proof that she's done anything to you," Samantha pointed out, "While it's true that wizards and goblins haven't always gotten along, that's still not a reason to accuse Ruby."

"Did you hear the voice of the person who was attacking you? Was it Ruby's voice?" Bridget asked.

"I didn't hear a voice, but it just seems like something a goblin would do," Elizabeth sighed, wishing that she could've seen who or what had been beating her up. "And I think the shape of her nose is also a reason, because people with hooked noses are evil."

"I know it's a trait that villains in movies and cartoons have, but that's just a stereotype used so that people automatically know who the bad guy is. It's not that obvious in real life, and sometimes someone who you might think looks innocent and sweet might actually be a vicious Dark Wizard," Samantha told her.

"Why would anyone attack me, though? I thought the attacker was going after muggleborns, but my parents are wizards! They do magical rituals and can see the future," Elizabeth suddenly protested, "I don't understand why no one believes that my parents are wizards too!"

"Maybe because they never went to Hogwarts and they never showed up on the list of potential students. I didn't meet your parents, if you remember, Professor Sprite was the one who told you about Hogwarts, so maybe she would have noticed something about them. Maybe the list just missed them," Samantha suggested, although she was pretty sure that if Elizabeth's parents never showed up on a list of potential Hogwarts students or were ever known by the wizard community. However, it would be something to look into, because if Elizabeth really wasn't muggleborn like everyone thought, then that made the mysterious attacker even harder to predict.

"I'm sure you wizards overlooked them, because I know they can do magic. I never saw them use wands, but I'm sure they could if they tried," Elizabeth asserted.

"Then it will be something to investigate. Because if this mysterious attacker is going after people who aren't muggleborn, then it will be even harder to predict his or her actions," Samantha said, "Although it's true that Severus Prince was attacked along with Rebecca, and his father is a wizard, but it may have been because he was trying to help Rebecca, according to Bianca's description of the situation. One thing's for certain, we definitely need to find out who this attacker is."


	11. Ravenclaw vs Slytherin

Chapter 11: Ravenclaw vs. Slytherin

The Christmas holidays came and went, and luckily there were no attacks during that time. Serena, who went home to visit her parents, noticed that the Elm sisters were also on the train. She thought for a moment that one of them might be the culprit, since they frequently expressed their hatred of muggleborns, but since she didn't have any proof other than that, she didn't pursue the idea. She brought home some magically enhanced sweets from the train to share with her parents, who were amazed to see the moving portraits on the Chocolate Frog cards.

It was on January 12 that the trouble began. The Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin was scheduled for that day, and Andromeda was eager to beat their seeker, Daisy Puff. She wanted to show the whole school that she, as a pureblood, would do much better at magical sports than a "mudblood" like Daisy. The announcer this time was Melissa Blips, and she called out the names of the players as they flew into the arena.

"Playing for Ravenclaw are Lucy Weasley, Jennifer Zimmerman, Ariel Marsh, Rose Weasley, Andrew Simpson, Parallax Popper and Daisy Puff! And the Slytherins are Louis Weasley, Cupcake Quigley, Libra Elm, Tom Twinkle, Edwin Knuckles, Diana Goyle and Andromeda Elm!" Melissa announced. The fourteen players flew through the field as the game began, and Slytherin began to take an early lead. Serena, Galaxy, Bunny, Albus and Bianca were watching together from the stands, while Scorpius sat with James, Rebecca and Severus nearby. Bianca was wearing a green and silver cheerleader outfit that she had received for Christmas as a present from her cousin and she jumped up and shouted cheers every time the Slytherins scored.

"Aren't you cold in that, wearing a short skirt in winter?" Serena asked Bianca when one of her cheers ended.

"I guess it's cold, but I wanted to look like a real cheerleader," Bianca admitted, though she was still shivering.

"You could also use that to look like the superheroes I saw on a muggle TV show. They were wearing outfits like that; I think it was called 'Sailor Moon' or something. If you wore your hair in pigtails with these buns on top, you would look like one of the girls from that show," Galaxy commented.

"I've never seen that show. Is it a cute story? Most of the superhero stories I've seen are kind of scary, with lots of fighting and villains who want to destroy the world," Bianca said.

"Well, Sailor Moon has fighting in it, but the main character is very cute and silly, and she reminds me of you. So that's why I mentioned it," Galaxy answered.

"I like the idea of a cute and silly superhero, but the fighting part still sounds scary," said Bianca, and then she jumped up and shouted another cheer when she saw Louis make another goal. "S-L-Y-T-H-E-R-I-N, Go!"

After a while into the game, Daisy and Andromeda both spotted the Snitch at almost the same time. They started chasing it, trying to outfly each other and catch it first. Daisy began to overtake Andromeda, who then became annoyed that a muggleborn could have such a chance at winning the game.

"Look over there, mudblood! It's your twin, the hook-nosed Potions master!" Andromeda shouted, losing some of her speed as she attempted to distract Daisy with her taunt. Daisy ignored her and caught the Snitch, and at the same time, a Bludger crashed into Andromeda's head, knocking her unconcious. She fell out of the air, although she was saved by Amanda Quigley, who managed to slow her fall with the use of a spell. Libra glared at Daisy, as if it was her fault Andromeda had not been paying attention to the Bludgers, but she stayed silent and followed the remaining members of the Slytherin team as they left the field.

It happened a few days later, on Wednesday afternoon, which was a full moon night. After Charms, her last class of the day, Serena went down to visit Amethyst's office to get her last drink of Wolfsbane.

"I'm sorry I didn't stop Andromeda on Monday, when she knocked over your cauldron. I...I did take points off, but I don't know how to stop her when she acts like that. I know Amanda told me to be more assertive, and that she's going to punish Andromeda, but I don't know how to not be scared of her," Amethyst admitted, sounding like she was scared of Serena as well, "Would she not hate me so much if my parents were a wizard and a witch?"

"Professor Quigley is right. You're the teacher, you shouldn't be scared of Andromeda. I'm not scared of her. She's just an annoying spoiled brat; you saw how she ran away from ME when I bared my teeth at her. How can a teacher be scared of her students? Isn't it usually the other way around?" Serena asked. While she liked that Amethyst was able to make Wolfsbane for her and help Madame Pomfrey with the potions that other students needed for their health, she really wished the Potions mistress would grow a backbone and quit being so scared of everyone hating her. Andromeda made just as much trouble in other classes, but most of her other professors were able to handle her; Amethyst seemed too intimidated by her to even give a detention.

"I know I shouldn't be scared of her, but I don't know how to change that," Amethyst sighed, "It's easy to just say 'be more assertive' but it's hard to actually do it."

"That doesn't mean you shouldn't at least try," Serena answered as she finished her Wolfsbane. This was very good timing, as Daisy Puff burst into the room at that moment, looking rather wild with her greasy hair all disheveled.

"It's a thestral," she gasped out.

"A what? What's a thestral?" Serena asked, completely confused as to what Daisy was referring to, and why she seemed like she was in such a hurry.

"It's like an invisible skeleton horse. Only people who have seen someone die can see them, so...is that the monster that's been attacking people?!" Amethyst realized in a panic, her voice raising to a shriek as she realized that everyone in the room with her, including herself, was muggleborn. Would the thestral chase Daisy into here and attack all three of them?

"But don't you have some kind of potion that can stop thestrals, Professor Sprite? Like a repellant? Or a poison?" Daisy asked, "That's why I came to you."

"I don't know. I don't want to kill it. Thestrals aren't usually evil. Maybe we should try to get Professor Hagrid, he knows more about them than I do," Amethyst said nervously. She crept to the door and then screamed as something invisible crashed into her.

"Did it come in?" Serena asked, staring at Amethyst in shock. It was like what she heard happened to Elizabeth; bruises were appearing on Amethyst's body and she was knocked into a cauldron, a green potion spilling over her.

"Of course it did. We need to get Professor Hagrid before it attacks us too," Daisy snapped, but it was too late. The thestral obviously noticed her, because while Serena couldn't see it, Daisy ducked out of the way suddenly and a table broke behind her as the thestral apparently crashed into it. Amethyst was screaming on the floor as her body began to shrink, her voice becoming high-pitched like the yapping of Serena's dog. Serena stared at her for a moment, looked at Daisy who was battling her invisible opponent, and then she hurried for the door. Unfortunately, since she couldn't see it, Serena ran right into the thestral and fell backwards.

"Petrificus Total..." Daisy was cut off as the thestral kicked her in the head, sending her flying across the room. She landed on the floor, smashing into Amethyst with her elbow by accident. This was very injurious to the Potion teacher's body, as she had shrunk to about a foot tall. Daisy gasped in pain as the thestral kicked her again, and it also knocked Serena down again.

"Serena? Are you done getting your..." Bianca's sentence cut off with a scream as she peeked into the room and saw what was happening. She raced away, calling for someone to help. The thestral ignored her and kicked Serena and Daisy again, knocking the latter unconscious this time. Serena struggled to get back up, but the thestral kicked her again, knocking her out next to Daisy.

"There's another attack in Professor Sprite's office this time? Why should you care to see the Headmistress? As a Slytherin, shouldn't you want to get rid of muggleborns?" Pansy asked Bianca. When Bianca had gone to the staff room to tell someone about what she saw, she found Professor Parkinson outside the door.

"I don't care if someone's parents are wizards or not! Serena's my friend and she was being attacked this time! So was Professor Sprite and Daisy Puff was there too!" Bianca cried, not understanding why Pansy seemed to hate Serena and the other muggleborn students so much. Her own cousins were muggles, and they were perfectly good people, they just couldn't use magic.

"Professor Sprite was attacked?! And you're doing nothing, Pansy?! That's the Head of Ravenclaw!" Sapphire Ferny, the new Ancient Runes professor interjected.

"They were attacked in her office, Serena and Daisy were in there too," Bianca said, glad to see that Sapphire wanted to help, especially since he usually only liked the Ravenclaw students, or so she heard.

"I hope Serena was able to take her Wolfsbane before she was attacked," commented Bridget, who overheard the conversation. "Anyone who's coming with me to Amethyst's office, let's go now." Pansy just smirked and went back into the staff room, but Sapphire and Bianca followed her. When they arrived, they found more bloody words written on the wall.

"Mudblood teachers go home," Sapphire read aloud while Bridget and Bianca looked over the victims.

"I don't think the attacker is in here right now, but we should be careful as we take them to the hospital wing," Bridget said as she moved Daisy's arm off of Amethyst's shrunken body.


	12. Thestral

Chapter 12: Thestral

When Serena woke up, she felt pains shooting through her body as her monthly transformation occurred, turning her into a werewolf. However, as the transformation ended, she remembered that was probably not the reason she was in a bed in the hospital wing. According to Daisy and Professor Sprite, it was a thestral that had attacked them, which Professor Sprite had described as being like a skeletal horse. Though Serena hadn't been able to see it, she certainly could feel it when it kicked her and she had also felt its bony body when she had crashed into it, so she knew it was a real creature.

"A thestral. That explains a lot," Professor Quigley said. Serena turned her head to see that she was standing by Daisy's bed. Hagrid and Bridget O'Blarney were there too, along with Daisy's cousin Severus. "Now it makes sense as to why no one has seen it until now."

"Why? Why could you see it, Daisy? I couldn't see it when I tried to protect Rebecca," Severus asked, unsure why only certain people could see the thestral.

"Only people who have seen someone die can see thestrals," Bridget answered, as Daisy was avoiding eye contact with her cousin.

"I'm sorry I mentioned it to you! I would hate it if I saw my dad die too!" Severus burst out, attempting to hug Daisy, who rolled over so that her back was turned to him.

"Go back to Gryffindor Tower, Severus. You should be in bed," Daisy muttered angrily.

"Yes, you should be in bed. You can visit your cousin tomorrow, she needs to rest tonight so she can heal properly," Amanda told him. She then turned to Hagrid. "Rubeus, we should take a look at your thestral herd and see if anything strange is happening with them. I'm not accusing you of purposely sending your thestrals to attack the students, but that herd in the Forbidden Forest is the closest place with thestrals to Hogwarts that I can think of." Hagrid agreed, although he also was confused as to how a thestral could have gotten inside the castle, and he left with Amanda and Bridget.

"Why can't I stay with Daisy? I want to help her. I want her to like me," Severus pleaded to Madame Pomfrey.

"Like the Headmistress said, the best thing for your sister is for you to let her have a good night's sleep tonight. She will be out of here by tomorrow and you can see her then," Madame Pomfrey told him as she led him out of the hospital wing. Serena was able to curl up on the bed like she normally did on full moon nights, and it was morning when she woke up next. Daisy was sitting up in bed, reading one of her books for class, and Rosie was sitting near her. Bianca was there too, waiting by Serena's bedside.

"I'm so glad you weren't killed! And Professor Sprite said you were able to get your medicine before you were attacked!" Bianca gushed. She jumped up and moved to hug Serena, and then she stopped, worried that she might hurt Serena.

"Is Professor Sprite back to her normal size yet?" Serena asked, remembering how her teacher had shrunk before her eyes.

"She's over there in that bed, and she looks like she's normal again. I saw you being attacked so I ran to get help. What was attacking you, anyway? Did you find out?" Bianca wondered.

"It was a thestral. It's like a skeletal flying horse, and only people who have seen someone die can see them. At least, that's what Daisy and Professor Sprite say it was," Rosie answered.

"So it wasn't a snake! Someone should tell Libra so she stops accusing Fenella of attacking people!" Bianca blurted out, "That little pet snake she has couldn't beat up people anyway."

"I never thought it was a snake. I always assumed it was someone using an invisibility cloak," Rosie stated, "But a thestral would explain why no one could see it until now. Except they don't usually run around Hogwarts and specifically attack muggleborns. There must be someone ordering the thestral around."

"I thought it might be Andromeda or her sister, but how would they get one of Professor Hagrid's thestrals without anyone noticing? And why would it listen to them?" Serena wondered.

"I don't know either. It could be an Animagus, but I don't know if people can become magical creatures like thestrals. All the Animagi I know of turn into ordinary animals," Rosie thought.

Rebecca was much more strongly convinced that Andromeda was behind the thestral attacks than Serena, and she told Severus about her theory in the Recreation Room on Friday afternoon.

"It's just too suspcious. She TOLD me the Chamber of Secrets was going to be opened on my first day here. And then when we were attacked, someone wrote 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Death to mudbloods' on the wall. I know the Basilisk that Uncle Harry killed is gone, but it's like Andromeda knew the thestral was going to attack me. Maybe she's ordering it around and she hid it in the Chamber since the Basilisk is gone," Rebecca explained.

"Maybe we could get someone who can see thestrals to go into the Chamber and look for it. Do you know how to open it? Is there a special key that Slytherins use to get in?" Severus asked.

"I don't know how to open it or where it is," Rebecca admitted, "But maybe Andromeda would tell us her secrets if I disguised myself as her sister Libra."

"How could you do that? Do you know any spells that let you change your appearance? Couldn't you just spy on Andromeda?" Severus wondered.

"I could use Polyjuice Potion. It makes you look exactly like someone else. It made Scorpius Malfoy look exactly like James Potter, so it could make me look like Libra. Andromeda would probably tell her sister anything," Rebecca said, excitement showing in her eyes.

"That sounds like it might work, if it REALLY could make you look like someone else," Severus agreed. Later that day, after Scorpius had finished going to his afternoon classes, the two of them met up with James and Scorpius in the Recreation Room again.

"So what kind of a plan do you have, Rebecca? You told me that you thought of a way we could find out if Andromeda is attacking people with that thestral," James said, curious as to what his little Slytherin cousin had come up with.

"I could use Polyjuice Potion and turn into Libra. Then I could question Andromeda; she would just think I'm being a concerned sister who wants to help her. Everyone knows that Libra agrees with her about hating people like me," Rebecca explained, "How did you get it, James? Do you still have any with you?"

"I used it up at the joke shop. And I can only tell you how I got it if you promise to keep it a secret. I'm NOT going to get a Howler because one of you snitched on me," James said grumpily, obviously thinking about how he lost his Hogsmeade privileges for the year.

"Did you steal from your father's office again? That's not very nice to steal from your father, especially Harry Potter," Scorpius guessed nervously, and then he cowered as if James was going to hit him. "I'm sorry! I shouldn't say anything against you! I don't even deserve to be with you or anyone else in your family!" Severus looked at both James and Scorpius in confusion, while Rebecca rolled her eyes at Scorpius's histrionics.

"Why don't you deserve to be with James? He's the one who shouldn't be stealing from Harry Potter, even if he IS Harry's son. I would get in big trouble if I stole from my dad, although if it's to help people who are being attacked it might be okay," Severus commented, and James glared at him and Scorpius.

"He didn't use it to help people, he just used it to make a duplicate of himself so he could disappear to do a silly prank without people wondering where he went," Rebecca stated.

"What's this about you stealing from Uncle Harry's office, James? I'm surprised you would even be able to get in there after what happened last Christmas," Lucy Weasley said, butting into the conversation.

"I didn't steal from Dad's office, I got the Polyjuice Potion out of Uncle Ron's office!" James blurted out angrily, and then he clamped his hand over his mouth as he realized what he had just said.

"Uncle Ron has Polyjuice Potion in his office? I'll remember that for the next time I vist him and Aunt Hermione," Lucy said with an impish grin.

"Not anymore, I took it all. Do you know how we could get some more, though? We want to make Rebecca look like Libra Elm so she can question Andromeda about the thestral attacks," James explained quickly, noticing that Fred, who was there on prefect duty, was staring at them suspiciously.

"You could just ask Professor Sprite to give you some. I'm sure she'd want to help since she was one of the victims. She's such a pushover anyway, I'm sure she'd give you anything you asked for. She doesn't even punish me when I use tricks from the joke shop on her," Lucy said.

"Then let's ask her this evening," Rebecca declared, "I am NOT going to get attacked again by that invisible horse monster if I can help it."


	13. Polyjuice Potion

Chapter 13: Polyjuice Potion

Amethyst was reading over the essays written by her 6th year students when she heard a knock on the door. She opened it and found Rebecca Dursley, Scorpius Malfoy, and Severus Prince waiting for her.

"Hello, Rebecca and Severus. Did you have any questions to ask me about today's lesson, or is this about something else?" Amethyst asked, and then she looked rather guilty when she saw Scorpius was with them. "I'm sorry, Scorpius. I know I should've stopped Andromeda, I apologized to Serena as well, and she said I shouldn't be scared of her, but I don't know how to change my feelings like that and not be scared and...oh, why am I saying this to you?! I'm sorry!"

"You don't need to apologize to me. I don't deserve it, no muggleborn should ever have to apologize to an evil Malfoy like me! Not after the way my father hated people like you!" Scorpius exclaimed. To make matters worse, he spotted his reflection in a mirror over the sink, and he sunk down, sobbing about he was just an evil clone. Severus looked at Scorpius and Amethyst in confusion, and Rebecca just glared at them.

"We're not here to whimper on the floor and argue about who's more sorry than who, we just need to get some Polyjuice potion," Rebecca snapped. Amethyst was shocked by this request, partially because she didn't expect any of her 1st year students to even know about Polyjuice in the first place.

"It's to help find out who's sending that thestral to attack people. That way, no one else has to get beat up like you and Daisy did," Severus clarified.

"I'm sure Andromeda is behind it, she's the one who TOLD me the Chamber of Secrets was going to be opened and then I got attacked! How else would she know there was going to be an attack if she wasn't the one doing it?" Rebecca added.

"I...I don't know. You DO have a good case for Andromeda being the culprit, but I don't want to accuse her without knowing for sure if she's guilty. That wouldn't be fair to Andromeda. The last time the Chamber was opened, Professor Hagrid was falsely accused of having opened it, and I don't want to do that to anyone. Andromeda might have just made a lucky guess, or she might have been told something by the real culprit," Amethyst suggested meekly, "I just don't want to jump to conclusions."

"See? Then that's an even better reason to question her! Just give me some Polyjuice Potion, and I'll turn into her sister Libra! That's how I'll find out what she knows!" Rebecca blurted out.

"I don't know if I'm allowed to just give you something like that. Maybe you should just tell Professor Quigley about your suspicions," Amethyst said nervously, fearing Rebecca's disappointment at having her request denied.

"But that would take too much time! And you obviously believe me, so why aren't you allowed to give it to me?" Rebecca demanded.

"Because it can be very dangerous and most wizards aren't legally allowed to have Polyjuice Potion in their possession unless they get permission from the Ministry of Magic. So I don't think I would be allowed to just give it to you unless I asked for permission," Amethyst explained, sounding more and more nervous as she spoke, and she visibly backed away from Rebecca, "I don't know how to make it better, I'm sorry, but I don't want to get in trouble, and..."

"Then get permission! Or I'll get permission from Uncle Harry! He works for the Ministry of Magic!" Rebecca realized as a big grin filled her face. "Thanks, Professor Sprite! I'll send him an owl message right away!" She hurried out of the room, seeming to forget that she had left Severus and Scorpius behind. Rebecca went straight to the Slytherin Common Room, where she eagerly got out her quill and some paper and wrote her letter.

Dear Uncle Harry,

In case you haven't heard, the creature that has been attacking people is a thestral. I don't know much about them, but I know it's a weird skeletal horse. On my first night at Hogwarts, Andromeda Elm told me that the Chamber of Secrets was going to be opened soon, and then I was the first person attacked by the thestral. I think Andromeda might know something about the attacks or maybe she's the one sending the thestral out herself. If I use Polyjuice Potion, I can turn into her sister Libra and question her, but Professor Sprite says I need to have permission from the Ministry of Magic to use it. Since you work there, can you give me permission or even send me some? James told me that Uncle Ron had some hidden in his office, but he might not have any more because James stole it and made Scorpius drink it that day in the joke shop.

Rebecca signed her name at the bottom and then took her letter to the Owlery. While she was there, she was approached by Melissa Blips, who was there to send in her story about Severus Snape to a wizarding magazine called "Creative Magic," which was a place for amateur artists and writers to send their work.

"I've seen you with him! That boy who looks just like my Sevvie-poo! Maybe he even IS my Sevvie-poo! He almost has the same name!" Melissa squealed.

"You mean Severus Prince?" Rebecca asked, confused as to why this girl was calling him by such a weird nickname. She then remembered that Chocolate Frog card she got on the train, the one with the man named Severus Snape on it. Was that who this girl was referring to?

"Yes! I'm sure all he did was change his name! I thought at first that the rumor that he came back to life was an insult to his sacrifice, but maybe it's true! Something's wrong about him, though," Melissa sighed, "He shouldn't be in Gryffindor, and he doesn't seem as dark and mysterious anymore."

"Came back to life?! You think he came back to life and changed his name?" Rebecca repeated in disbelief. "If people could come back to life, I'm sure Uncle Harry would have his parents back! If you know of any good ways to bring people back to life, I can put them in my letter here, since I'm sending it to him."

"I don't know how Severus Snape could've come back to life, but it can't be just a coincidence. They look so similar and they have the same first name," Melissa replied.

"Severus told me it's because they're cousins, so that's why they look alike. I guess he was just named after a relative like how James is named after his dead grandfather," Rebecca said, "I don't know what's wrong with him not being dark and mysterious anyway."

"Because that's why I was attracted to my Sevvie-poo in the first place! He's just like a gothic hero in a romantic story, and only one special woman can melt his icy heart!" Melissa gushed.

"But after you 'melted' him, wouldn't he stop being so mysterious? Wouldn't that ruin things?" Rebecca wondered.

"Well, he would still be cold to other people, but only show his gentle side to me, who is an equally dark and mysterious gothic heroine," Melissa sighed romantically.

"I don't know if I would call YOU dark and mysterious, although it IS a mystery to me why you're so in love with a dead guy," Rebecca stated with a roll of her eyes.

"But he's not dead, he's...right behind you!" Melissa yelped excitedly, and Rebecca turned around to see that Scorpius and Severus had just entered the Owlery too.

"Why didn't you stay to talk to Professor Sprite? She told us some things about Polyjuice Potion that you should know," Severus stated.

"But YOU should know all about it already, Sevvie-poo! Because you were the famous Potion master! And I'll be the special woman to melt your icy heart!" Melissa gushed, leaping at Severus, who was completely surprised by this, and grabbing him into a big hug.

"I'm not my cousin! You have him confused with me!" he protested.

"It's okay. I'll keep your secret. You can tell ME how you came back to life," Melissa whispered seductively.

"But I'm not my cousin!" Severus repeated, "Please believe me!"

"Get off of him. He was going to tell me about Polyjuice Potion," Rebecca ordered.

"Professor Sprite said you need to have a piece of the person you're turning into, like their hair. She also said she would help us if we got permission from the Ministry of Magic and promised not to hurt Andromeda or Libra," Scorpius answered, and then he stared at Melissa and Severus. "And Melissa, don't confuse people with their relatives. Just like I am NOT my father, Severus isn't his cousin. How would you like it if people kept thinking you were a relative of yours instead of yourself? And it made them hate you because your father was evil so they think you're evil too!"

"Why would people hate me for looking like my relatives? People say that I look like Mum, but then they say I'm pretty like her. And I would never hate Sevvie-poo!" Melissa replied, also confused as to what Scorpius meant about getting permission from the Ministry of Magic for something and Professor Sprite helping them. And did Rebecca just say they were making Polyjuice Potion?!

"People hate ME for looking like my evil father, and I don't blame them. And I didn't mean that you would hate Severus for looking like his cousin. I meant that you shouldn't confuse him with someone else just because of his looks," Scorpius explained.

"If you're making Polyjuice Potion, can I help? Maybe Sevvie-poo's portrait will like me if I show him that I can make really high level potions!" Melissa suggested.

"I guess since you know about it now, you can help. But only if we get permission from Harry Potter, like Professor Sprite told us to do," Rebecca said. While she thought Melissa's obsession with Snape was rather weird, she thought that this plan might need some extra help, especially since she didn't want Melissa running off and telling too many other people about her plan. If this was going to work, she could NOT let Andromeda and Libra know about it.


	14. Lucky and Unlucky

Chapter 14: Lucky and Unlucky

The next morning, which was a Saturday, Rebecca received a letter from Harry. He had given her permission to use Polyjuice Potion for her task of finding out whether or not Andromeda was behind the thestral attacks. Unfortunately for Rebecca, when she went over to the Gryffindor table to tell Severus and Scorpius the good news, James glared at her, obviously angry about the letter HE had received from Harry.

"You told him about me stealing from Uncle Ron's office, didn't you?" James hissed at her, "You lost me Hogsmeade privileges for next year too!"

"I lost your privileges?! You're the one who was stealing things, not me," Rebecca retorted. She then turned to Scorpius and Severus. "Uncle Harry gave me permission. We can go tell Professor Sprite whenever you're ready."

"That's amazing! Harry Potter is even nicer than I thought he was, to do something so special for you!" Severus gushed.

"Didn't he do something like that himself when he was our age, though? At Halloween last year, I visited Moaning Myrtle with Rosie and the others and Myrtle told us about how Mr. Potter and his friends brewed Polyjuice Potion in secret because they wanted to use it to spy on Draco and find out if he was the Heir of Slytherin or not," Galaxy piped up; apparently she had been listening in on the conversation.

"If Dad stole Polyjuice Potion himself, then why did he punish me for doing the same thing?!" James blurted out, "And why didn't you invite me along to hear that story?!"

"Because you and Scorpy went to that ghost party and you said you didn't want to come," Galaxy reminded him.

"And you just stole that Polyjuice to use in a stupid prank. I'm not doing it just to play a prank on Andromeda, I want those thestral attacks to stop. Even if she's not the culprit, she obviously knows something about it," Rebecca added.

"You still didn't need to tell on me," James muttered as Rebecca left the Great Hall with Severus, Scorpius, and now Galaxy in tow. Unfortunately, on the way to Amethyst's office, they met up with Professor Amber McAngus, who seemed to scowl at both Rebecca and Scorpius.

"I'm watching you, Malfoy. You better not be leading that poor missorted muggleborn and those innocent Gryffindors into anything evil," Amber sneered.

"I would NEVER do such a thing! We're going to find out who's causing the thestral attacks!" Scorpius shouted back, clearly hurt by Amber's comment.

"So you can help them and kill muggleborns too?" Amber said with a smirk, relishing the tears that were pouring out of Scorpius's grey eyes.

"Stop that! Scorpius isn't doing anything wrong! Why are you hurting him like that?!" Severus exclaimed, blocking the older Gryffindor protectively.

"Because he's a Malfoy. All Malfoys are evil Death Eater wannabes. And how typical of you to stick up for him; you look just like your Slytherin cousin who hated me and the other Gryffindor students. Snape always favored Draco too," Amber replied.

"But Scorpius isn't Draco! How would you like it if someone hated you because of who your parents were, Professor McAngus?!" Galaxy shouted.

"His father hated me for that very reason, Baghill, and you shouldn't be hanging around people like them. They'll corrupt you and turn you into a Death Eater if you don't watch out," Amber declared before turning away.

"Come back here and say that stuff about my friends again!" Galaxy shouted, and she began to chase Amber. In a lucky coincidence, she crashed right into Amethyst, who was also coming from the Great Hall to her office.

"What's wrong, Galaxy?" Amethyst asked gently. She could also see Severus, Scorpius and Rebecca nearby; Scorpius was sobbing and Severus was trying to comfort him, while Rebecca just looked rather annoyed and impatient.

"Professor McAngus was being really mean to Scorpy and Severus!" Galaxy blurted out, "She hates him because of Draco!" Amethyst seemed at a loss, unsure what to do.

"That's not the real reason we wanted to see you. Uncle Harry gave me permission to use Polyjuice Potion," Rebecca stated, trying to change the topic away from Scorpius's infamous father.

"I'm glad to hear that," Amethyst said with a nervous smile. "Can we come to my office to discuss it? I don't want too many people to hear about it, especially if you want to keep it a secret from Andromeda and her sister." Galaxy and Severus helped Scorpius up off the floor and they followed Rebecca and Amethyst to the Potion Mistress's office. As usual, there were freshly baked treats available, as Amethyst had made brownies the night before.

"So do you have any Polyjuice Potion now? Or do we have to wait for you to make it?" Rebecca asked, getting right to the point.

"I do have some; it was for a class with my 7th year students. I think I have enough left for one person, so I will let you use it," Amethyst answered.

"Great! All we need is a piece of Libra's hair or something," Rebecca said cheerfully, but then she became more serious again. "How are we going to get that without her suspecting anything?"

"You could take it off of her hairbrush or something," Galaxy suggested, "Too bad you don't have the Invisbility Cloak, though, then you could use that and she wouldn't notice at all, even if you pulled some of her hair out. Or you could offer to brush it for her."

"I don't know if Libra would want that or not, but maybe I'll think of something or even be lucky if I go back to the Slytherin common room," Rebecca said. Sneaking into the 7th year girls' dorm was the most viable option she could think of, although since she had never tried it, she wasn't sure if there would be any magical alarms or traps that would catch her. "I'll come back and tell you when I have the hair, Professor Sprite."

After that, Rebecca went her separate way, though instead of going immediately to the common room, she needed to use the girls' bathroom first. This happened to be a very lucky decision, because while Rebecca was in one of the stalls, where all one could see of her was her feet, Libra also entered that particular bathroom. Rebecca peeked through the crack in the door and couldn't help but grin when she noticed Libra was brushing her long hair by one of the mirrors. After making sure that Libra had left the room, Rebecca crept out of the stall and peeked into the wastebasket. To add to her sudden run of good luck, there were a few clumps of Libra's tangled hair in it, which Rebecca quickly grabbed and stuck in the pocket of her robes. She went back to show Amethyst, who was very surprised at how quickly Rebecca had returned.

"How did you get that? I hope you didn't hurt Libra," Amethyst said, sounding a bit worried.

"No, it was really easy. She was brushing her hair while I was in the loo and I got the tangled parts she threw away," Rebecca replied, amazed at how easily this was going.

"Would you like to do this now? Have you thought of how you're going to make sure the real Libra doesn't find you talking to her sister?" Amethyst asked her warningly.

"Well, no," Rebecca admitted, "But maybe after I take the potion, you could call her in to your office and pretend to talk to her about something that happened in class to distract her. That way, she won't see me and I won't hurt her, since you're so worried about that."

"I guess I could do that," Amethyst said, thinking that she might use the Floo powder to talk to Professor Quigley and tell her to bring Libra in, since she was the head of Slytherin and thus Libra would be more likely to listen to her.

"Then I want to drink the Polyjuice Potion right now. This is good time to do it because I got the hair and I'm ready," Rebecca stated eagerly.

"Okay. I have to warn you, it doesn't feel very good to turn into another person. Most people who have taken Polyjuice Potion describe the transformation as rather painful," Amethyst warned her, though she got out the bottle of Polyjuice Potion and poured it into a cup. Rebecca added the hair, and it turned into a bright green color, looking very much like the toy "slime" Rebecca had seen in muggle toy stores. Hoping it would taste better than it looked, Rebecca gulped it down. Unfortunately, Rebecca's good luck took a turn for the worse as she gasped, feeling like her skin was burning and bubbling. She then heard Amethyst yelp in surprise and she looked at the door, where a very shocked Andromeda was watching her!

"What the...what are you doing in there?! Why is the little Dursley mudblood turning into my sister?!" Andromeda exclaimed, watching Rebecca's body change before her eyes.

"You weren't supposed to see this! You ruined it!" Rebecca screamed, lunging at Andromeda and stumbling because of her sudden gain in height.

"Please stop, Rebecca! She didn't mean to spy on you!" Amethyst pleaded, but her cries went unheeded as Rebecca got back up and chased Andromeda, who was shouting "I'm telling Libra! I'm telling Libra!" Galaxy, who came back at that moment out of curiosity, saw what looked like the Elm sisters having a fight. However, it was obvious that "Libra" was not herself, and Galaxy guessed that was actually Rebecca.

"Did Andromeda walk in on her while she was drinking it or something?" Galaxy asked Amethyst, who nodded in assent, confirming that their plan had failed.


	15. Scorpius Attempts A Rescue

Chapter 15: Scorpius Attempts A Rescue

Professor Quigley had been informed of Rebecca's suspicions, and she did agree that it sounded like Andromeda knew something about the thestral attacks. Andromeda was taken to the Headmistress's office for questioning, but she insisted that she didn't even know what a thestral was until Daisy and Amethyst had mentioned it, and although she admitted that she wanted to help the "thestral trainer," she did not know who was controlling it or how it got into Hogwarts in the first place.

It was in the middle of February that the next thestral attack occurred, on the day after Valentine's Day. Because it was a Friday, the 2nd year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws had Transfiguration together as their last class of the day. During that class, Rosie and Scorpius were partners, and afterwards they decided to go to the library together to get started on the essay that Professor Patil had assigned. It happened when they were heading for the library and there were only a few other students around. Rigel Green, a Yorkshire muggleborn who had been in the same class with Rosie and Scorpius, suddenly was knocked to the floor in front of them.

"It's that evil thestral again!" Scorpius exclaimed, and he ran in front of Rigel, determined to protect him despite not being able to see the attacker. Rosie ran off, calling for help; unfortunately, Scorpius and Rigel were now alone with their invisible attacker. Rigel attempted to run away too, but the thestral trampled over Scorpius and kicked Rigel again, knocking him into the wall. Scorpius saw a large bite mark appear on Rigel's arm. He reached up and grabbed what felt like a bony horse's leg. The thestral kicked backwards, sending Scorpius tumbling across the hallway.

Several minutes later, Andromeda was on the way to the library too when she saw Rigel and Scorpius laying on the floor. She looked up at the words written on the wall and then she realized something was familiar about them.

"That looks like my sister's handwriting," she whispered to herself. Was Libra behind the thestral attacks somehow? Andromeda wanted to ask Libra about it, but if it WAS her sister, then she wanted it to stay a secret. If Libra was found out, then she would be expelled, and Andromeda did not want that to happen. Not only for her sister's sake, but because she didn't want the attacks to be stopped. She wanted that thestral to chase all the muggleborns out of Hogwarts and frighten them away from the school forever. Andromeda smirked as she read the words and looked at Scorpius, who was lying on top of Rigel, as if he had tried to protect his classmate.

"Aha! Caught in the act!" shouted a triumphant voice. Andromeda turned around to see Amber McAngus pointing an accusatory finger at her. Amanda, Rosie, Bridget, Neville, Hagrid and a few other curious students had arrived.

"Amber, Rose here said the attacker was invisible as usual. Did you see Andromeda around when Scorpius and Rigel were attacked, Rose?" Bridget asked.

"No, it was just like the other attacks," Rose said, though it did look suspicious to see Andromeda standing right by the scene of the crime.

"She could've used an Invisibility Cloak! She hates people like me enough to do it!" Amber accused.

"Wanting to do something and even being capable of doing it are two different things. Also, it's innocent until proven guilty, Amber. There have been enough problems with people being falsely accused. Or did you forget what happened to Sirius Black in the 1980s? Or even our own Rubeus Hagrid here, he was accused of setting the original monster of Slytherin on the students the other two times attacks like this occurred," Bridget lectured her.

"Well it's obviously a Slytherin. I used to think it might be Malfoy's work, but he wouldn't beat up himself, unless the thestral got out of control and attacked him too," Amber speculated.

"It's not necessarily a Slytherin, the last time it was the work of a Gryffindor student who was possessed by a diary," Bridget corrected her.

"And who was behind that diary plot? Lucius Malfoy! It's in his blood! I bet Scorpius is behind these attacks, and this time that thestral got out of his control!" Amber ranted.

"Please, Professor McAngus, Scorpius was just as surprised by the attack as Rigel was, and he wasn't directing it at all. He was trying to protect Rigel," Rosie spoke up nervously, "I didn't see ANYONE directing the thestral."

"But what if he..." Amber spluttered, "He could've been using a spell to trick you!"

"That's enough, Amber. Stop making such baseless accusations. It's obvious to everyone but you that Mr. Malfoy has nothing to do with the thestral attacks," Amanda scolded, "And speaking of him and Mr. Green, we need to get both of them to Madame Pomfrey." She then proceeded to conjure two stretchers and she levitated the two unconscious boys onto them. Amber stomped off, muttering "Malfoys are always evil," and the others bring Rigel and Scorpius to the hospital wing.

When Scorpius woke up, Rosie and Galaxy were both sitting near his bed. He also could see Rigel in another bed nearby, and his visitors were Daisy and Amethyst.

"I failed," Scorpius whimpered, "I wasn't able to save him."

"At least you tried. Even Daisy and Professor Sprite couldn't beat the thestral, and they were able to see it. That was very brave of you, and very much like something Uncle Harry would've done," Rosie said gently, remembering how her mother once described Harry as having a "saving people thing." Scorpius actually managed a weak, incredulous smile upon hearing that.

"Really? Do you really think I did something worthy of the great Harry Potter?" he asked, "If I was as good as him, I would've been able to save Rigel."

"Even Uncle Harry couldn't save everyone. There were times when he failed too, like when Sirius died. But at least he always tried and never ran away. I think it was a very kind and noble thing you did for Rigel," Rosie replied.

"Yeah, so quit thinking that you're going to turn evil, because I don't think there is ANYTHING evil about you at all," Galaxy added cheerfully. Unfortunately, Pansy Parkinson entered the hospital wing at that point, requesting to talk to Scorpius. Galaxy glared at Pansy; she hated the way Pansy picked on the muggleborn students and treated them like they were stupid, especially since Astronomy was also a subject taught at muggle schools and thus wasn't that different at Hogwarts.

"Scorpius, I know I've probably said this before, but you are a Malfoy. You look remarkably like your father, in fact, you could've been cloned from him. Being a Malfoy is a wonderful, noble status, you know," Pansy began.

"It is NOT! I HATE being a Malfoy! There is NOTHING noble about anything anyone in my family ever did!" Scorpius shouted, sitting up quickly in his rage.

"Sad, isn't it? How low such a noble, pureblood family has sunk. You need to remember your pureblood background and stop associating with filthy muggleborns and their friends. You should have rejoiced when that thestral attacked the mudblood boy, rather than foolishly risking your life for him," Pansy scolded.

"NO!! I'm glad I saved him! I don't WANT to be like my family! I hate them! I don't WANT to remember my family background!" Scorpius raged. He attempted to get out of bed to confront Pansy directly, but he was still weak and Rosie caught him as he collapsed, falling into her arms. To make matters worse, Amber, who had been listening in at the doorway, stepped up to Pansy, smirking.

"Now now, you don't have to worry. Malfoy here is just putting on an act for poor, gullible Miss Weasley. He was there when Rigel was attacked, he's the one behind the thestral attacks," Amber stated.

"I wish he was," Pansy sighed, "He would be living up to his father's noble name if he was."

"His father was NEVER noble! The entire Malfoy family is evil! It's in his blood to do evil things and trick people into thinking he rescued the very person he attacked!" Amber argued. Pansy smirked at her, about to utter a cutting remark, when Madame Pomfrey interrupted them.

"That is quite enough, you two. I don't care if you're professors, this is a place of healing! These people need to rest! Leave now before I report you to Professor Quigley!" she ordered. Pansy left without a complaint, but Amber stuck her tongue out childishly before she stomped out of the room. After Amber had accused him of causing the thestral attacks, Scorpius had begun sobbing incoherently in Rosie's arms. Madame Pomfrey helped him back into bed, looking like she might throw Rosie and Galaxy out too.

"Professor McAngus is right," Scorpius choked out, "I'm nothing but an evil Malfoy."

"That's not true at all!" Galaxy exclaimed, "Don't listen to her! She's just got a stupid grudge against your dad or something."

"Would you like us to stay with you, Scorpius? Madame Pomfrey might want us to leave so you can sleep, though," Rosie asked, unsure what to say to comfort him. She was very shocked at Amber's behavior. She knew Amber was suspicious of Scorpius and highly disliked the Malfoys in general, but she never expected that anyone would even think to seriously accuse Scorpius of being behind the thestral attacks. He was the last person Rosie would ever think of as being a suspect.

"I don't know if I deserve to be with you," Scorpius whimpered.

"I think a long, dreamless sleep will do him good," Madame Pomfrey said, holding a bottle of a purple potion. She poured it into a spoon and fed it to Scorpius, who took it meekly. He fell asleep quickly and Rosie and Galaxy left, though they planned to come back and visit him in the morning.


	16. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Chapter 16: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The week after Rigel and Scorpius were attacked, Harry and Ginny Potter came back to Hogwarts. Dennis Creevey had made the history of the Chamber of Secrets the topic of the week, and they were asked to come as special guests. This, of course, was because they both had been highly involved in the last incident involving the Chamber and its monster and thus would have personal experience to share. On Wednesday, the 2nd year Slytherin and Hufflepuff students attended their History of Magic class, and Chocolate Quigley was excited about getting to see Harry Potter again. Serena took her usual seat in the back next to Bunny, wondering if Harry would have any ideas about who was behind the current thestral attacks.

"Hello, everyone, and as you might know, Harry and Ginny Potter are here as a special guest this week. I knew them in school, you know," Dennis said, announcing the start of the class. "As you might also know, this week's topic is the Chamber of Secrets."

"Slytherin's Chamber, you mean. Why are the Slytherins still at Hogwarts? They've caused nothing but trouble!" a Hufflepuff student named Shadow Smith declared.

"There wouldn't have BEEN any trouble if mudbloods weren't allowed in Hogwarts in the first place," Andromeda retorted. There was a general uproar as several people were angered by Andromeda's bigoted attitude and her use of the "m-word," including a few Slytherins.

"See? That's exactly why Slytherins are evil!" Shadow shouted.

"But Severus Snape was a hero!" Melissa protested.

"Do you really think I'm evil?! What did I do wrong?" Bianca added, panicked and wondering if there was some offense she had committed that she didn't remember. Dennis waved his wand and a loud bang came out of it, startling most people into paying attention to him again.

"Shadow and Andromeda, that's 5 points off for both of you. No one is going to be kicked out of Hogwarts, no matter whether they're muggleborns or Slytherins. There have been both good and bad wizards and witches from all four houses," Dennis scolded, and then he softened a bit. "It seems some of you already know some things about the Chamber of Secrets. Rather than just telling you things that you already know, how about those who have some previous knowledge about the Chamber tell the rest of us what you know? How about you start, Shadow?"

"It was first created during the time of the Founders of Hogwarts. Salazar Slytherin hated muggleborns and wanted to kick them out of Hogwarts, so he set a Basilisk on them. The other Founders were able to contain it in the famous Chamber, but Slytherin altered the lock so that it could be opened by his heir because he wanted to leave Hogwarts and make his own school. In the 1940s, Voldemort opened it, but he blamed Professor Hagrid. The last and third time it was opened was in 1992, which is when you defeated the basilisk, Mr. Potter. That's what I know of the story," Shadow answered.

"That's not what I heard! I thought Slytherin created the Chamber himself, and since he could control it, he sealed it himself because only people who can talk to snakes can control something like that. He just wanted to get rid of muggleborns, so he wouldn't want it to get loose in the school and just randomly attack people," a Slytherin student named Bob Schultz spoke up. "Also, he had a reason for not trusting muggleborns. As Professor Creevey has told us, there were muggles who were out to kill witches and wizards at the time Hogwarts was founded. Perhaps Slytherin was afraid of muggleborn students because he thought they might have relatives who would then go hunting for witches and wizards to kill. And while most adult wizards and witches were safe from these attacks, children who accidentally used magic were easy targets and innocent muggles were killed as well. While excluding muggleborns doesn't make much sense now, it made sense to Slytherin in his time period."

"You still admit your house is founded on hating muggleborns," Shadow pointed out smugly, "And even without that, villains are always the ones who are sneaky and willing to do anything for their own gain."

"What about being willing to do anything for the sake of a loved one? What about spying against Voldemort? Being sneaky doesn't make you a villain, there are good people who do spying too!" Melissa protested, obviously thinking of her Sevvie-poo again.

"Shut up, you traitor! Why didn't you go to Slytherin with your boyfriend, if you like it so much?" Shadow snapped back at her.

"Just because I love Sevvie-poo, it doesn't mean I don't like being in Hufflepuff! And he was in love with a Gryffindor himself!" Melissa argued. The loud cracking sound came out of Professor Creevey's wand again.

"Enough. We are not here to discuss which house is better than the others, or if any of the houses are evil. The next person who insults one of the houses again loses 10 points. The reason Professor Rain set up these interhouse classes is so that you could learn to get along with each other better. Now let's get back to discussing the history of the Chamber of Secrets. While it is true that Salazar Slytherin and his heir were the ones controlling the old basilisk, this is not a reason to condemn all Slytheirn students for something that happened in the past," Professor Creevey spoke up sternly again.

"How did you beat the basilisk, Mr. Potter? Are you able to talk to snakes like Fenella?" Chocolate Quigley asked, turning the attention back on his favorite hero.

"I used to, but not anymore. It wasn't a natural ability I had. It was because Voldemort had put a piece of himself inside of me, and when that piece was destroyed back in 1998, I lost the ability to speak to snakes. As for the basilsk, I really didn't use Parselmouth to defeat it, although that ability did help in locating it. The short version is that I stabbed it with Godric Gryffindor's sword. The long version is more complicated than that, although Ginny and I will try to explain it if you want," Harry answered.

"Could any sword kill it? Or did it have to be Gryffindor's sword? Do the other houses have special swords too?" Shadow asked, annoyed that it sounded like Gryffindor got all the glory in this story as well.

"I don't know about any other swords, but the other founders also had treasures of their own. Unfortunately, Voldemort warped them into being his Horcruxes, so they had to be destroyed. I don't know much about basilisks, as that's more Professor Hagrid's area, but I don't think it had to be a sword owned by a Hogwarts founder," Dennis said.

"Only Gryffindor's treasure survived, that's as typical as Slytherin having an evil basilisk," Shadow muttered bitterly to himself.

"Fenella here is a Parselmouth," Moondust Catweed spoke up, pointing to Fenella. "If she opens the Chamber, maybe we could have the class in there. If the Basilisk is gone, then it would be safe."

"You want to go through the sewers, be my guest, Catweed. I don't care if the Chamber has a noble history, I'm not sliding through pipes just to see the place the poor old basilisk was killed," Andromeda retorted.

"Come on, Mr. Potter, you always had adventures! Are the pipes big enough to fly through? We could get a bunch of brooms from Professor Glitter," Moondust protested.

"That might not be a bad idea, but maybe other students outside of this class would like to hear our guests' stories. If Harry, Ginny and Professor Quigley agree to it, there could be a big class in the Chamber for anyone who wants to brave flying through the pipes to hear it," Dennis agreed, much to Andromeda's shock.

As it turned out, both Harry and Ginny agreed to that plan, and so did Amanda Quigley, who thought it sounded like a great chance for the students and even some of the faculty members to learn about Hogwarts history. She also felt that if Slytherin was ever going to repair its tarnished reputation as the "Dark Arts house," one of the first steps would be to make sure that the current generation of Slytherins did not hide from the house's history, both the good and the bad parts. If Salazar Slytherin had been the one to break away from the other founders first, then it was up to Slytherins to repair that damage so that their house wasn't as separate and isolated from the other three. Of course, the existance of the Chamber and basilisk and people like Voldemort did nothing to help the house's reputation, and hiding and glossing over that past would only harm Slytherin's underhanded and evil reputation. Just like how Horace Slughorn had revealed his mistake in telling Tom Riddle about Horcruxes and enabled Voldemort to be defeated, Slytherin House would have to admit its dirty past. Sure, discussion of the infamous Chamber of Secrets would probably fan anti-Slytherin sentiment in the short term, but Amanda believed that in the long run, it would be better for the Chamber of Secrets to be secret no more.

That evening, after classes were finished, the tour of the Chamber of Secrets was set up. Demetria Glitter supplied people with brooms who didn't have any to use to fly through the pipes. To ensure the safety of students who wanted to come on the tour but weren't good at flying, they were paired up with others who could fly well, to ride with them. Bianca and Serena took one of the school brooms, Serena leading because she was slightly better at flying. Fenella, accompanied by her partner Moondust, came to the front of the line that had been made extending from the "broken sink" where the entrance to the Chamber was. It was her job to open the door to the Chamber, since she was the only person currently at Hogwarts who could speak Parseltongue.

"Open," she stated, though almost everyone else heard it as a strange hissing sound coming out of her mouth. Harry, Ginny and Professor Quigley blocked the students from coming too close as the passage opened up where the sink had stood.

"Two at a time on your brooms after us!" Professor Quigley called out. As had been previously discussed among them, she got on the back of Ginny's broom, while Fenella rode behind Harry. Neville and Demetria stood at the entrance to guide each pair of students through; Andromeda had butted through first and flew down with Bob Schultz. After Scorpius Malfoy and James Potter went down, it was Serena and Bianca's turn. They hovered over the hole for a moment, and then Serena bent the broom down and within seconds they were shooting through the pipes, guided by Bianca's Lumos spell. They came flying out at the bottom, nearly crashing through the old remains of small animal bones. They were finally in the Chamber of Secrets.


	17. Lesson in the Chamber

Chapter 17: Lesson in the Chamber

Fenella sat down on a large rock, waiting while Harry and Ginny helped watch the opening, making sure that everyone got through the initial flight through the pipes safely. While she was waiting, a small brown-haired girl came up to her, glaring. The girl's name was Sparkle Lights, the same person who had confronted Serena and Bianca when they found her spying on the Slytherin team tryouts.

"This is all a trick of yours, isn't it? You're going to send that Thestral of yours to kill us down here," Sparkle accused. Fenella was understandably confused, as she had never even met the infamous Thestral that had been attacking muggleborns this year. Another girl, a blonde this time, joined Sparkle in staring down Fenella. Fenella definitely recognized her as being Elizabeth Topper, a Gryffindor student she had seen during Potions class. Elizabeth had always looked at Fenella with extra suspicion, the reason for this was because Elizabeth claimed that Fenella's hooked nose was a sign of evil nature.

"I've never even seen the Thestral," Fenella protested meekly, "I've never seen anyone die."

"Probably because you were working behind the scenes and never got your hands dirty doing the actual murders. I'm sure you've had that poisonous snake of yours bite people on your orders. No one who can talk to snakes could be anything but evil. That book Professor McAngus wrote says it all," Sparkle replied triumphantly.

"Are you seriously accusing her of murder, Lights?" Dominique Weasley demanded, intervening when she noticed what the two Gryffindors were doing. This wasn't the first time she had caught Sparkle and Elizabeth accusing people of being evil based off of them being Slytherins or simply because of their looks. True, before coming to Hogwarts she had thought that Slytherin was kind of the "bad" house, but she was certain that her brother Louis wasn't evil and thus her opinion of the snake house had softened after he was sorted there.

"She's a Parselmouth! All Parselmouths in history have been Dark Wizards!" Sparkle shouted in retort.

"I'm pretty sure that's not true, maybe history books just have only told about the evil ones because they were the ones who were the most noticeable. And we know that the Thestral attacks have nothing to do with snakes, so Fenella definitely isn't behind them," Dominique scolded her, "Everyone is almost ready, so you need to let Fenella go back to Uncle Harry so she can open the doors in the Chamber for us." Fenella was relieved to notice Harry Potter waving at her to come with him, and so she joined him, after whispering a "thank you" to Dominqiue.

"Listen up, everyone. Ginny and I will guide you, but you need to stick close together, and if for any reason we tell you to get your brooms and fly out of here, you should do it," Harry called out, and Fenella looked at the opening to the pipes nervously when she heard the ominous warning. If the Basilisk had babies in here, would she have to stay, since she was the only one who could potentially control them?

"If there's baby Basilisks in here, I know someone who could be a perfect meal for them!" David Longbottom blurted out, pointing to a very recognizable pale blond head of hair, the owner of which let out a scream of rage and fear.

"Yeah, you! Better you than Scorpius!" James snapped in defense of his sobbing friend. Ginny put her fingers in her mouth and made a shrill whistle that stopped the uproar that had begun when some people began panicking over hearing the warning that there could be something dangerous in the heart of the Chamber.

"We're pretty sure there's nothing dangerous down here, or we wouldn't have agreed to do the lecture in here. Now just follow me and Harry and you'll be safe," Ginny called. Fenella saw her whisper something to Neville, who went back to where David had shouted from, obviously going to scold his obnoxious son.

"Go ahead and open the door, Fenella," Harry instructed. He may have been able to do that in the past, but that connection to Voldemort had been gone for 20 years. Fenella looked at the door to the Chamber, which was decorated with very life-like snake sculptures.

"Open," she commanded, though to almost everyone else it sounded like hissing gibberish. The snakes on the door moved, and then it opened, revealing the pipes that led directly to the Chamber. Harry and Ginny led the large group to the main room, the place with the statue of Salazar Slytherin and where Harry had beaten the Basilsk. Its dead body was still there, although by this point it was mostly a very long skeleton. Harry, Ginny and Amanda entered the room first, wands out, but no baby Basilisks or other dangerous creatures could be seen, although a few sewer rats skittered away from the people in fright.

"It looks like it's safe to hold the lecture in here," Amanda announced. She and the other teachers went around and conjured chairs for everyone, making the Chamber look like a rather gloomy auditorium. Neville, who had been watching David very closely, made sure that his son was seated right between himself and Dominique. Dennis went up to the front of the group, joining Harry and Ginny.

"To start off, in class today, both Shadow Smith and Bob Schultz were able to tell us what they knew about the history of the Chamber. Could both of you repeat what you said in class, so that everyone has the same information to begin with?" Dennis requested, beckoning for both students to come to the front of the temporary lecture hall.

"Don't let the Slytherin speak! He's biased!" Sparkle shouted.

"No. We need to hear both sides of the story. Let both of them tell what they know about the Chamber first," Bridget corrected her. Both Shadow and Bob repeated the stories they told in class earlier. Bob's version, which asserted that Salazar's hatred of muggleborns had to be looked at in the context of the time period of the founders, was an idea many of the students had not thought about. Even Andromeda was skeptical that mere muggles could pose a threat to powerful wizards, even during the days before all the secrecy laws were put into place.

"Now that we're all updated on what was discussed in class, let's listen to Harry and Ginny's story! You may ask questions too, just raise your hand like you were in the usual classroom," Dennis announced, and Shadow and Bob went to sit back down with their classmates. Galaxy immediately raised her hand, as she was confused about something.

"How did Voldemort open the Chamber if he was turned into a ghost? Could a ghost who speaks Parseltongue open it?" she asked.

"Voldemort didn't open the Chamber. I did," Ginny admitted with a bit of a sigh, which caused a flurry of surprised whispering.

"Why would you do THAT, Mum? That's not like you at all!" James blurted out.

"I didn't know I was doing it. Voldemort possessed me, using his diary. I didn't know it was his until it was too late," Ginny sighed, "I found it with my textbooks at the beginning of my first year here. I didn't know who Tom Riddle was at the time, all I knew was that his diary seemed so understanding of my problems at first. When I was possessed, I would wake up afterwards and not know what I had been doing. I would never have wanted to open the Chamber on my own, James."

"But then how did Dad fight the basilisk? Did he fight it in here while you were possessed and controlling it?" James wondered.

"No. Voldemort was the one controlling it at the time. He was absorbing my life away and I was unconscious during Harry's fight with the basilisk and the memory of Voldemort that came out of the diary. He saved my life, and never blamed me for being so foolish as to trust that diary. Never, ever trust a book or a similarly-charmed object that seems to talk back to you, it could be a Dark object possessed by someone who is trying to harm you," Ginny warned everyone.

"But I'm still confused! What was the Gryffindor sword doing in here? Are objects from all the founders in here too?" Chocolate Quigley blurted out.

"It wasn't in here originally. Fawkes, Professor Dumbledore's old phoenix, brought it to me. A Gryffindor who is in true need of it can take it out of the Sorting Hat," Harry answered.

"But can people from the other houses use the Sorting Hat in that way? Is there a Slytherin sword too?" Chocolate continued questioning.

"I don't know. Although since the hat belonged to Godric Gryffindor, maybe he made it so that it gave Gryffindors special privleges. I know that sounds unfair, but I've never heard of anyone from the other houses being able to take an item of their own out of the hat. Perhaps the reason for this is that the sword was left at Hogwarts with the hat, while the other founders' treasures were passed down as heirlooms in their families," Dennis explained, hoping that this talk about the founders and their relics wouldn't lead to another disruptive argument like the one that broke out in class earlier.

"Does anyone else have any other questions?" Amanda Quigley added, "If not, we will finish the tour and go back to the surface."

"How did Voldemort put his memory in a diary? Is it like how he messed with the other founder's objects?" Moondust asked.

"It's exactly like that. The diary was a Horcrux, although I didn't know that until much later. It's not something you should do. No one should ever murder someone to make one of those things," Harry said, "Horcruxes aren't failsafe anyway, there are ways to destroy them. And if I hear about anyone creating them, it is part of my job as an Auror to do exactly that." After a few more questions were answered, the lecture ended, and the group made their way back to the large pipe they had come down in. It was time to fly back to the surface. Fenella mounted the broom behind Ginny and they took off, zooming up through the pipes until they flew out of the place where the "broken sink" had been.

However, while the lesson on the Chamber of Secrets had ended, Andromeda had questions of her own for her sister, who she suspected had something to do with the thestral attacks that had initiated the talk about the Chamber.


	18. Secret of the Elm Sisters

Chapter 18: Secret of the Elm Sisters

It wasn't until Thursday evening that Andromeda was able to find a time to talk to her sister, who was busy studying for her NEWT exams and had separate classes from Andromeda on top of that. Also, Andromeda wanted to make sure she could talk to Libra at a time when the two of them were alone, so that no one else would hear about it. Andromeda certainly didn't want her sister to be thrown out of Hogwarts and possibly put in Azkaban. This was not only because she honestly loved her sister, but also because Andromeda agreed with Libra that muggleborns should be banned from Hogwarts. After supper, they went in the direction of the Slytherin common room, but instead of going there, they went into an empty classroom and closed the door.

"What do you need to know that you can't ask me in the common room?" Libra demanded, she was holding her Charms textbook and had been studying when Andromeda had made her request.

"It's about the thestral. The writing that appeared on the wall the last time it attacked looked like your handwriting. And at the beginning of the school year, you told me that the Chamber of Secrets was going to be opened. It's like you knew that someone was going to be attacking those filthy mudbloods. If you're behind those attacks, I'd like to help you," Andromeda said in an excited whisper.

"If I answer, will you absolutely promise not to tell anyone? Not even to brag, not even if Professor Quigley interrogates you," Libra said.

"Of course I wouldn't! If you're behind the thestral attacks, then I want them to continue so I wouldn't tell anyone!" Andromeda replied rather indignantly. Libra nodded.

"Then this is my answer. I am the thestral. I am an animagus. I wrote those words on the wall, although I did try to disguise my handwriting," Libra admitted after making sure that she didn't hear any footsteps or see anyone in the hallway.

"How did you do it? Can I be an animagus too?" Andromeda wondered in awe. She had thought that perhaps Libra had stolen a thestral from Hagrid's herd, but this was even more amazing! Her sister was so powerful!

"You need to work on learning general transfiguration theories first, and I know what your grades are like in that class. While it's true that Professor Quigley is a biased blood-traitor, I have been able to make top marks in her classes, unlike you. But if you study very hard, you may be able to become an animagus by the time you're my age. I wasn't able to do it myself until soon before this school year began, but that's why I was studying transfiguration books all summer. But if you would like me to tutor you in your Transfiguration studies, I can do that for you," Libra offered.

"Really? You'd do that for..." Andromeda was abruptly silenced as Libra clamped a hand over her mouth.

"There's someone coming. I told you to bring one of your textbooks, now get it out so we can look like we're studying," Libra hissed. They were just getting their books out as the voices became clearer.

"Why are you so worried about where I got the Polyjuice Potion from, Scorpius? Can't you just trust that Professor Sprite wants you to feel better about your looks so she gave it to me?" Andromeda recognized the voice as belonging to James Potter and she rolled her eyes.

"I bet he just stole that Polyjuice Potion. He's always stealing things, he passed by our table and grabbed a piece of pumpkin bread right off of Danny Nott's plate yesterday!" she muttered. The door creaked open, revealing James and Scorpius.

"You! You two are just like my evil family, always hating muggleborns!" Scorpius blurted out.

"Why don't you go away and play with your little mudblood friends, blood-traitor?" Andromeda snapped.

"Now, now, Andromeda, maybe he's seen the light and decided to come to our side," Libra cautioned her sister.

"Why would I EVER want to do that? Join people who want to torture muggles and muggleborns? NEVER! IT'S EVIL! WHY DO YOU THINK I HATE MY FAMILY SO MUCH? BECAUSE MY FATHER AND GRANDFATHER ARE EVIL!" Scorpius screamed, stomping closer and closer to the Elm sisters with each word until he was close enough to pound his fist on the desk Andromeda was sitting at for emphasis.

"Come on, Andromeda, let's leave the little blood-traitor to have his silly rant," Libra said, as she noticed her sister looked ready to retort.

"Scorpius, we should leave too, we don't want them seeing what we're up to," James added. Andromeda turned to James, staring at him curiously and ignoring her sister.

"If it's not something we can tell people about, then we shouldn't be doing it. We should just take that Polyjuice Potion back to Professor Sprite," Scorpius warned James, "We shouldn't be using something you probably stole from her."

"I didn't steal it from her! She would've wanted you to have it!" James protested, "Just drink and quit questioning things! A real Gryffindor just does stuff and doesn't worry."

"And that's exactly why you Gryffindors are always making trouble. Because you don't think and you just assume everything you do is right. The same for you Slytherins," a new, Irish-accented voice cut in. Diamond Flannery was standing at the doorway, looking angry.

"It's okay, Professor Flannery. We were just fostering inter-house relations, just like Professor Rain wants us to do," Libra said sweetly.

"No we weren't! That is a lie! Do NOT lie to a Professor like that!" Scorpius scolded.

"It's okay, he's just one of those silly Gryffindors who is prejudiced against Slytherin," Libra said dismissively.

"I don't hate Slytherin, I hate blood-purist bigots, no matter what house or school they're from!" Scorpius retorted.

"You four should be in your common rooms! It's after curfew! Get going before I call on both Professor Quigley and Professor Hagrid!" Diamond demanded.

"We were about to go there. That silly Gryffindor boy wanted to continue fighting," Libra said, trying to pull Andromeda out the door.

"If everyone was as obedient as Hufflepuffs, we wouldn't have this problem," Diamond muttered to himself.

"May we visit Professor Sprite before we go back to Gryffindor Tower? There's something James and I have to give back to her," Scorpius asked Diamond.

"NO! Don't tell him about that! You're going to get me in trouble!" James panicked, pulling on Scorpius's arm in an attempt to drag him out of the room.

"What is it that you have to give back to Professor Sprite that would get you in trouble?" Diamond asked them suspiciously.

"Polyjuice Po...MMMPHH!" Scorpius's answer was cut off as James clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Nothing. He's just worried about his homework assignment on Polyjuice. We'll be going now," James said airily, but Scorpius wrenched out of his grasp.

"You were stealing things again! Just like you did with Mr. Ron Weasley's Polyjuice Potion! Why do you do bad things like that? Why can't you be good like your father?" Scorpius accused.

"I KNEW you were up to trouble, Potter! Professor Flannery, he also stole pumpkin bread from the Slytherin table at breakfast," Andromeda blurted out. Libra had gone off to the common room, but Andromeda stayed behind, eager to see the two Gryffindor boys get punished.

"Potter, you and I are going straight to Professor Sprite to make an apology, and then to Professor Hagrid. I'm sure your Head of House needs to hear about your behavior. You come too, Malfoy, you seem to know all about Potter's mischief," Diamond ordered.

"I was TRYING to do Scorpius a favor! Amethyst would want me to have that Polyjuice Potion if she knew I was using it to help someone!" James protested.

"We'll see what she has to say about that. If you try to escape, you will be in even bigger trouble, Potter," Diamond warned.

"Why did you tell on me? None of this would've happened if you kept your big mouth shut!" James complained.

"Because you shouldn't be stealing things! Professor Longbottom is right, real bravery isn't just going along and doing things without thinking, real bravery is doing what's right, even if you have to stand up to your friends! Just like HE did!" Scorpius shouted back.

"Enough arguing! 10 points off from both of you for not listening to me and 10 more from you, Potter, because I have strong suspicions that you have been practicing thievery. It'll be more points off if you don't come with me right now!" Diamond interrupted, and he grabbed both Scorpius and James and stomped in the direction of Amethyst's office, pulling them along. Andromeda was on the floor, having a giggle fit.

"He never suspected Libra and me. I hope no one ever does. I hope she's able to get all those mudbloods kicked out of Hogwarts," she snickered to herself as she stood back up, ready to go back to the Slytherin common room.


	19. Bianca's Saturday

Chapter 19: Bianca's Saturday

Saturday morning, three days after the tour of the not-so-secret Chamber of Secrets, Bianca and Serena were eating breakfast in the Great Hall.

"I hope those two Gryffindor boys don't start fighting again today," Serena muttered.

"I hope they do! It's so funny to see that thief James Potter argue with the Malfoy blood traitor. At least when we Slytherins steal things, we do it so no one finds out," Andromeda bragged.

"Like with Louis Weasley's broom last year?" Serena pointed out dryly, referring to when Andromeda had stolen his broom right at the beginning of a Quidditch game in an attempt to show that she should be on the team instead of someone she viewed as being a "blood traitor."

"I don't think anyone should be stealing, no matter what house they're in. You know what Professor Quigley will say, doing those kinds of things is why some people hate ALL Slytherins," Bianca warned.

"Why are you even here? I've been wondering about that. Your idea of ambition is being a cute singer in a frilly muggle dress, and you never seem to be cunning or anything that Slytherins stand for, not to mention you're always with that werewolf mudblood freak," Andromeda snapped.

"Werewolf who could bite you in your sleep if she refused to take Wolfsbane. Not that I would do that, but, you know, I wouldn't be a werewolf if you hadn't lured my dog into the Forbidden Forest," Serena muttered.

"Because I wanted to be in Slytherin like Mom, and I think green and silver are pretty, so the hat let me go where I wanted to be," Bianca pouted, "And don't say that word about Serena!"

"What, werewolf? That's what she is, she just said so," Andromeda smirked.

"I mean mudblood!" Bianca exploded, "You're always..."

"Ooohh, Bianca said the m-word! Punish her, Miss Cupcake, she said the m-word!" Andromeda called, waving her arm at Bianca accusingly.

"You said it first! I was telling you what YOU called her, you racist bigot! You're like those American muggles a long time ago who enslaved people for having dark skin!" Bianca burst out.

"See, even you admit muggles are trouble," Andromeda snickered. Bianca was about to continue the argument when an even louder voice filled the air.

"JAMES SIRIUS POTTER! STEAL ONE MORE THING AND YOUR PARENTS SAID THEY WOULD PULL YOU OUT OF HOGWARTS FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR AND MAKE YOU CLEAN GEORGE'S STORE EVERY NIGHT WITHOUT USING MAGIC!" Everyone in the Great Hall could hear as a Howler erupted from the Gryffindor table, sending the angry voice of Mrs. Molly Weasley all over the room, a voice that Hagrid and Neville recognized hearing in a Howler back in 1992. Andromeda fell off of her chair, rolling around on the floor in a fit of mocking laughter.

"This never would've happened if you just did what I told you to without worrying! Then I wouldn't have gotten caught!" James accused, turning on Scorpius.

"Listen to yourself, James! How would you like it if someone stole something from you? Stealing is wrong, no matter what your reason is, and I don't need you to steal things for ME!" Scorpius shouted back. Their argument could be heard over at the Slytherin table, although Andromeda's loud guffaws partially drowned it out.

"You're the one always whining that you look like Draco! Can't you just be happy to look like me for an hour so I can sneak into Hogsmeade!" James shot back, revealing his true reason for stealing the Polyjuice Potion to the entire school.

"Sneak into Hogsmeade? SNEAK INTO HOGSMEADE! I AM DONE BEING USED AS A DECOY FOR YOUR ILLEGAL PRANKS, JAMES POTTER! GOOD BYE!" Scorpius screamed, and he stomped loudly out of the Great Hall, leaving James staring in shock.

"Potter, sit down an' eat. Yeh're going to need all yer strength ter do yer detention with me today," Hagrid snapped at him from the front of the Gryffindor table, "YOUR father never used his best friends like that. Draco Malfoy, on the other hand, thought nothing of making his friends disguise themselves so he could work on letting Death Eaters into Hogwarts, and he didn't even tell them what he was doing, according to yer own father's report of the situation."

Luckily, there were no more major disturbances at breakfast after that, and Serena and Bianca went back to the Slytherin common room.

"I noticed that your voice sounds different when you get really angry or upset, like this morning. It almost sounds like you start talking with an American accent," Serena commented bluntly.

"That's because I AM American. I'm originally from Indiana, in the USA. I moved here to England when I was 9," Bianca answered, sounding oddly embarrassed, "I wish I was English like you, though, and could always speak with that wonderful accent the rich English people like Scorpius have."

"But if you're American, then how come you said your mother went to Slytherin? Were you trying to make up a fake past for yourself as well as a fake accent?" Serena demanded, unsure why anyone would want to try to change their voice like that.

"Because SHE'S from England. She went to Hogwarts, but she came to America where she met my dad, and that's where I was born. I wasn't trying to lie to you, Serena. I've always liked trying to imitate my mother's voice and talk like an English person. Don't you ever think it's fun to imitate other people you admire?" Bianca pleaded.

"I don't admire anyone," Serena replied bluntly, "I just want to be myself and not try to be someone I'm not."

"Please don't hate me for not being what you thought I was. I wasn't trying to lie about where I was from, I would've told you but you never asked," Bianca whimpered, afraid Serena was angry at her.

"I don't hate you. I just can't imagine ever wanting to change my voice like that. It's just strange. I've heard of some people doing that, trying to eliminate their accents so people can't tell where they're from, and that makes no sense to me," Serena said.

"Maybe they got made fun of for their accents? Maybe they're afraid people will stereotype them as stupid? Or maybe they really like a different accent and want to be able to speak like that too. I just thought it would be nice to talk like everyone else here, since I really like English accents and like the way they sound more than American accents," Bianca sighed, "I know you probably don't understand because you hear English accents all the time."

"Getting teased and stereotyped isn't a reason to change your accent, no more than it would be a reason for me to make up a fake family tree and claim my parents were wizards. Look, I don't mind if you try to sound English, talk like an American or even start imitating some other accent. I just think it's weird," Serena muttered.

"I'm sorry I upset you so much. Do you want to go snuggle with Jessica? That always seems to make you feel better," Bianca asked gently, "Or would you like to come to the Recreation Room with me? I wanted to see if Scorpius was in there, or there might be someone else fun to talk to."

"No, I'll just stay here with Jessica, like you said. You may like Scorpius, but I think he's just annoying and loud and whiny," Serena said.

"He wouldn't be that way if people didn't pick on him so much," Bianca sighed, and then she left for the Hogwarts Recreation Room by herself. Surprisingly, Scorpius actually WAS there, sobbing in Rosie's arms. '

"How can James do such evil things? He's Harry Potter's son!" Scorpius wailed.

"I guess it's just like how your father did evil things, but you're one of the nicest, most kind-hearted boys I know. You're much nicer than my little brother, for example," Rosie said gently.

"Really? Even though my father is evil? You don't hate me for what he did to your parents?" Scorpius whimpered.

"Why would I hate YOU for something someone else did? You're Scorpius, not Draco. You're a completely different person. Draco wouldn't have tried to rescue Rigel, for example," Rosie pointed out.

"I like you too, Scorpius. That was very brave the way you stood up to James like that. I don't know what I would do if one of my friends, especially someone I admired, was doing something wrong. I think I might be too scared to tell them to stop," Bianca said.

"I just can't believe he would try to use me as a decoy just so he could sneak into Hogsmeade. It's like he only cares about getting caught and doesn't know that stealing is just wrong," Scorpius sighed.

"He needs to learn that being the son of Harry Potter is a position of responsibility and not just priviledge. He can't just keep hanging on his father's name like that, not much longer. Just like how I work my hardest to live up to my mother's name, even though I'm not sure I can do that correctly," Rosie said.


	20. Slytherin Studies

Chapter 20: Slytherin Studies

Rocks clattered on the floor as Ruby Gorgok dodged the assault from above.

"Little goblin, little goblin, are you a tricksy spy? Coming here to teach the other goblins how to use wands? Bang, bang, there's going to be a war!" Peeves the Poltergeist taunted as he tossed rocks at Ruby in the hallway.

"I just might. That will teach the wizards to oppress my father," Ruby snapped back.

"Naughty naught words! Little goblin's going to get expelled!" Peeves giggled. He stopped, surprised, as a rock flew past his own head.

"Leave her alone, Peeves! It's bad enough that people like Andromeda hate her, you don't have to add to it!" Severus Prince shouted, coming to Ruby's rescue.

"Oooh, it's Sevvie who came back from the dead! Are you going to take points off from Gryffindor, Professor Snape?" Peeves giggled before flying away, as he had noticed a student's bag had been left in the hallway and he wanted to dump it around.

"I'm sorry he did that to you. Did he hurt you too badly?" Severus asked Ruby, relieved that Peeves was gone for the moment.

"He has bad aim," Ruby said coolly.

"More like you're very good at dodging, just like my cousin is," Severus said in awe, "She's one of the best flyers I know, I bet you would be almost as good as her."

"You don't need to try to be my friend out of pity. I don't need it," Ruby snapped back.

"Why would you think I'm trying to do that?" Severus wondered, obviously hurt that his gesture of friendship wasn't reciprocated.

"Because I know what you wizards are like. Either you hate us goblins, or you try to get close to us so you can steal things from us," Ruby accused.

"But I don't want to steal anything from you! I just want to be everyone's friend," Severus pleaded.

"Like anyone would admit to being a thief, not when wizards don't even realize they're stealing things," Ruby snapped before turning away and heading to the library. It was a sunny Saturday at the end of March, but Ruby wasn't interested in playing outside and celebrating the coming of spring. She had to make sure she beat all those cheating wizards at their own game and get the top grades at Hogwarts. Also, she had agreed to have a study session with Rebecca Dursley, who was in the same year and house. Unfortunately, when she and Rebecca had found a quiet corner and were about to start reviewing their homework from the Potions class they had on Friday, they were interrupted by a young writer of historical fiction who thought Rebecca could help her.

"Rebecca? You know about Severus Snape, right? I'm sure Harry Potter has told you things about his time as a student and how Snape was in love with his mother. You must have just been distracted by something else that other day in the owlery, because I know you must be a Snape lover too. You're best friends with Severus Prince, and he's the next best thing to having Snape alive again," Melissa whispered excitedly.

"You're the one who's in love with him. Why do you need to ask me? Why can't you go bother James or Albus, they're Harry's REAL children," Rebecca said, her tone turning bitter towards the end.

"Because I don't know where they are, but you're right here," Melissa pouted, "And I've asked Albus but he doesn't know that much about the wonderful person who provided his middle name."

"You're interrupting our study session. Take your Dark wizard worship elsewhere," Ruby snapped.

"Snape was NOT a Dark wizard! He was a hero! How dare you accuse him of being evil!" Melissa blurted out indignantly.

"He was part of the Death Eaters at one point. And even though he helped to defeat Voldemort, he never did a thing to stop the Death Eaters from murdering innocent goblin families," Ruby explained.

"But...he was a spy! He couldn't let too many people know he was really against Voldemort or it would all be ruined!" Melissa protested.

"Blips! Keep your voice down before I throw you out!" scolded the old librarian, Madame Pince.

"You're his mother, aren't you?" Melissa whispered excitedly, ignoring the warning she had been given, "You disguised yourself with a hidden name, but you're really Eileen Prince! Your name is an anagram of 'I'm a prince" and you look so much like him!"

"I am NOT Eileen Prince, nor do I have any children. Now get out of the library and quit making up foolish rumors about me," Madame Pince ordered, pointing to the door.

"You even scold like my Sevvie-poo!" Melissa squealed, twirling around and pretending to swoon. She then saw Severus, who had come into the library to return a book, and she squealed even louder.

"It's a family reunion! I found your missing mother, Sevvie-poo, you know, I'm sure she's really Eileen Prince! Listen to her, you should learn to be stern and scolding like her. You've lost that wonderful aspect of your personality," Melissa said, her tone quickly turning disapproving.

"That's not Aunt Eileen. Aunt Eileen mixes potions for a store, she doesn't work at Hogwarts. And my mother's name is Susan. Could you please stop getting me confused with my dead cousin? I don't understand why you think I'm him," Severus corrected her gently.

"I said, GET OUT! You do not need to be in here if you have nothing better to do than spreading foolish rumors, Miss Blips!" Madame Pince ordered.

"I don't think we're going to get any studying done in here. Let's go back to the Slytherin common room, if it's too noisy in there we can go to the girls' dorm," Rebecca suggested. She had noticed that not only was Ruby glaring at Melissa, but other people had taken to staring at the commotion and were obviously distracted too. Ruby nodded in agreement and they both left, hoping that the return to their common room would be uninterrupted. It was fairly empty when they arrived, and they began using the flashcards Rebecca had made.

"Name the ingredients in a boil-cure potion," Rebecca recited from her card. True, it was a potion they had learned in the first few weeks, but it was always good to review older material as well as newer potions.

"Snake fangs, dried nettles, porcupine quills, and horned slugs," said Ruby.

"You got that one correct! Now which ingredient has to be added after the cauldron is taken off the fire?" Rebecca quizzed.

"The porcupine quills," answered a new voice. Andromeda was watching them with an impish smirk on her face. "I remember the day we made that potion. Too bad you weren't there to see it. It was so much fun to see that blood-traitor Malfoy scream the way he did."

"What did you do, pour the potion on his head or something?" Rebecca snapped back, "You're interrupting us. If you're not going to use your big pureblood brain of knowledge to help us, then go away."

"No, it's just always so funny to see him scream about looking like his wonderful father, like he thinks that's a bad thing or something. He should be proud to follow in the footsteps of Lucius Malfoy, now there was a powerful man," Andromeda said.

"Powerful, yes, but he'll never get any admiration from the likes of me. Not when he supported Dark wizards who killed innocent goblins," Ruby sniffed.

"Like goblins are ever innocent. Always hoarding money and being treacherous, your kind are," Andromeda hissed.

"You wizards are the treacherous ones! Even Harry Potter, the so-called champion of those who are oppressed by other wizards, thought nothing of Imperiusing goblins and robbing Gringotts and making vague promises to Griphook," Ruby accused.

"Uncle Harry never told ME he robbed a bank! No wonder James is always stealing things, it's in his blood!" Rebecca gasped. Andromeda burst out laughing, collapsing to the floor in giggles.

"A common thief! The 'champion of mudbloods' Saint Potter is a common thief! I HAVE to tell Chocolate Quigley all about it, that blood traitor will be soooo heartbroken to hear that his hero isn't such a hero anymore!" Andromeda crowed.

"We're not going to get any studying done with her around. Potions class has nothing to do with Harry Potter anyway," Ruby said, "Unless you're too shocked to hear that your favorite hero isn't so great anymore."

"I do love Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny, but that has more to do what they have done for me rather than anything they did before I was born. They were the ones who taught me about magic and allowed me to meet so many interesting types of magical people, like you. After we do our studying, you can teach me more about that goblin culture you're so proud of," Rebecca answered, and Ruby gave her a rare slight smile. Although Ruby sometimes wondered if Rebecca was just treating her like a novelty item, she was glad to find that there was at least one witch at Hogwarts who was interested in hearing the goblins' side of things rather than assuming that wizards and witches were always in the right.


	21. Amber Attacked

Chapter 21: Amber Attacked

"I can go there by myself! I don't need you following me!" Andromeda snapped at Diana Goyle as they walked down the first floor hallway. It was a week later, a Saturday again. Because of an incident in Defense Against the Dark Arts class earlier that week on Tuesday, Andromeda was assigned to serve detention with Bridget that Saturday. Diana had taken it upon herself to accompany Andromeda to Bridget's classroom, as she was worried that otherwise, Andromeda would run away from her punishment and get in even bigger trouble.

"I just want to make sure you serve your detention with Professor O'Blarney. You tried to skip out on Professor Patil's detention back in early March and lost us even more points, and that is not going to happen again," Diana replied sternly.

"That's because I didn't deserve it! Everyone should've praised me for trying to get that mudblood Topper to leave class!" Andromeda argued, "Even you agree with me that purebloods like us are superior! And that means we should keep those who are unworthy of studying magic out of Hogwarts!" Before Diana could figure out a retort, she gasped as the infamous thestral ran past her and Andromeda, charging towards the classroom that was used for Muggle Studies.

"It's that thestral..." she realized.

"Let's go help it! Let's go beat up that mudblood Amber!" Andromeda cheered, and she hurried after the thestral.

"But it's against the rules!" Diana protested, determined to follow Andromeda and keep her out of trouble. The thestral attacks bothered her too, as she felt that it was rather extreme to actually attack muggleborns and attempt to drive them out of Hogwarts, like they were some kind of threat. She began to hesitate, wondering if Andromeda and her father were right, since somehow those muggleborns and their supporters HAD been able to take over the wizard world. But did that mean they were a threat? Diana had always tried to obey authority, but what happened when different authority figures said different things? She shook her head and entered the classroom, and then she gasped in horror.

"Go thestral! Kick her out of here!" Andromeda cheered as the thestral literally kicked Amber into the wall. Amber screamed with rage and pain as her wand flew out of her hand and bounced off the edge of a desk, out of her reach. Diana shuddered at seeing the blood on Amber's legs and the crunching sound the thestral's hoof made as it stomped on her shin. This was just so wrong, even if Professor McAngus HAD been rather cruel to her before.

"Please stop it, thestral!" Diana begged, tears beginning to form in her eyes. She was frightened, unsure whether to run away, run for help, or try to fight the thestral herself. Could she freeze it with a spell?

"No! Don't stop it! Don't you dare!" Andromeda blurted out. She noticed Diana draw her wand shakily and charged at her, determined to protect her sister without revealing their secret.

"Pe...Petrificus Totalis!" Diana shouted, struggling to aim at the thestral without hitting Andromeda or Amber. She missed, blasting a hole in the wall right above Amber's head. She then was knocked off balance as Andromeda crashed into her, and she dropped her wand too. Just then, Bridget entered the room as well, having heard the commotion. She pointed her wand at the thestral too.

"Incarcerous!" she called. At the same time, Andromeda leaped off of Diana and in front of Bridget, and the conjured ropes wrapped around her instead. The thestral, seeming to sense that it was in danger of being caught, made a dash out of the room. It leaped over Diana and Andromeda, landing on Bridget and trampling her on the way out, and then it jumped out of a window that was open in the hallway, flying away from the castle.

"You! YOU! YOU'RE HELPING THAT THESTRAL! YOU'RE THE ONE BEHIND THE ATTACKS!" Amber screamed, pointing at Diana.

"I...I'm sorry, Professor McAngus. I was trying to stop it. I didn't want it to hurt you," Diana whimpered.

"I believe you, Diana. What we need to do now is get Amber to the hospital wing," Bridget said as she sat up.

"Untie me first!" Andromeda demanded, as she was tied up in the ropes Bridget had conjured.

"That wouldn't have happened to you if you hadn't tried to block the thestral. That thing is dangerous, Professor O'Blarney was about to stop it," Diana scolded.

"But I wanted it to win," Andromeda whined, although Bridget untied her anyway.

"What are you DOING? Keep her tied up, Bridget, she's evil!" Amber shrieked, "Her and Diana, you don't know what people like them did to me! THEY PUT ME IN AZKABAN FOR BEING MUGGLEBORN!" Diana stared in shock and horror. She didn't know about that! Was there really a time when people were being put in that prison just for having muggle parents?

"We can question Andromeda and Diana about it later. Right now we need to get you taken care of," Bridget said firmly, but then she softened. "Of course I know what happened to you, Amber. I was one of the Aurors who freed you and the others, remember?"

"Why were people put in Azkaban just for being muggleborn? It's not like that's against the law," Diana said, confused. Or was that during the short time when Voldemort had taken over the Ministry, back in the late 1990's?

"I can tell you and Andromeda about it while we take Amber to be treated," Bridget said as she conjured a stretcher and helped Amber onto it.

"It's my past, so I'LL tell them! Your Death Eater grandfather and his friends put me in Azkaban! And they had DEMENTORS THERE!" Amber shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Diana, who was even more confused at the mention of dementors.

"Are those an old-fashioned torture weapon?" she asked.

"Not really. They're one of the Darkest beings around. They feed on happiness and suck it out of people, making them relive their worst memories and leaving them only with their worst thoughts and feelings. They were once used to guard Azkaban before they rebelled and joined Voldemort. After he was defeated, they were replaced with Auror guards. Even hardened criminals like the Death Eaters wouldn't have deserved to be mentally tortured by Dementors," Bridget explained as she, Andromeda and Diana walked along, Amber's stretcher being levitated in front of them.

"What do you mean they wouldn't deserve to be tortured? Of course they would! They're Death Eaters!" Amber blurted out, "They did it to me, so I should get to have them tortured in the same way!"

"You're not the only one who has said that, but it's really all for the better that the Dementors were replaced by Aurors. If you remember, the Dementors were easily persuaded to follow Voldemort and thus abandoned the Ministry's side, although they were obviously still used by the Ministry when it was under the control of Voldemort's Death Eaters. While Voldemort is gone, if we went back to using Dementors as guards, they could possibly be lured away by some other future Dark wizard who wanted to use them to spread despair. Also, Dementors are blind and thus were able to be fooled by Sirius Black's Animagus disguise, something that wouldn't have happened if humans were guarding Azkaban at the time. While it did later turn out that he was innocent, the point is, it is my belief, and the Ministry's belief, that human Aurors are much more trustworthy and reliable guards than the Dementors," Bridget explained.

"What about Fenrir Greyback? He escaped under the watch of human guards and bit that poor little mis-sorted muggleborn girl!" Amber protested, "If he was guarded by Dementors, he would've been too depressed to escape! Or if he had just been given the Kiss, like his Death Eater friends threatened to do to me..."

"I never said human guards are perfect. I understand you want revenge, but you really don't need to take it. Almost all of Voldemort's Death Eaters are either dead or imprisoned, and Greyback was, I must add, the ONLY escapee from Azkaban since the Death Eaters were rounded up, and he is currently back in his cell. The children of the Death Eaters are innocent, and they do not need to be punished for their parents' crimes," Bridget said firmly, and then she softened. "We're at the Hospital Wing, and Poppy will make sure you're all healed. You were very lucky that Diana and I helped you, all of the other Thestral victims were unconscious by the time anyone was able to save them."

"How can you trust Diana? Her father helped the Death Eaters! She may have been just pretending to help me!" Amber accused.

"Whatever her motivations were, she DID help you, unlike Andromeda, who still has to serve her detention with me today and needs to stay with us while we tell Poppy what happened," Bridget replied as she gently set Amber's stretcher on top of the nearest bed.

"She tried to petrify me!" Amber burst out.

"I was aiming at the Thestral! I really was!" Diana pleaded.

"I can't believe YOU'RE a blood traitor too," Andromeda muttered sullenly, wishing that Bridget, of all people, hadn't shown up during the Thestral attack. She had to tell her sister to be more careful, otherwise someone might actually hit her with a spell next time.

"Professor McAngus! I heard that horrible rampaging Thestral mentioned, were you attacked by it too?" Madame Pomfrey asked, having noticed her new patient.

"Yes! And SHE tried to help it!" Amber accused, pointing at Andromeda, who glared defiantly.

"You need to be healed first, Professor McAngus, that's the most important thing right now," Madame Pomfrey replied, "Thank you for helping her, Professor O'Blarney."

"I will be sure to tell my students about ways to deal with the thestral attacks if they come across one. Tying it up or petrifying it may be the way we can capture it and find out why it is attacking muggleborns specifically," Bridget said.


	22. Bubbles and Explosions

Chapter 22: Bubbles and Explosions

It was that time of year again, the time when Slytherin would have their final Quidditch game of the year. While they had lost the other two games, the one against Gryffindor had been close enough that Cupcake felt that if the team played well enough, they could win this and get a good shot at the Quidditch Cup. Unfortunately, there was the fact that Andromeda was the Slytherin Seeker to deal with. While Andromeda was good at flying and could probably catch the Snitch fairly quickly if she put her mind to it, she seemed to be more interested in doing things like showing off aerial maneuvers and taunting the opposing team. When Cupcake had picked Andromeda for the team back at the beginning of the school year, she had hoped that playing Quidditch would give her an outlet for some of her destructive energy, but that plan hadn't worked so far.

Thus, while the team was waiting in the locker room, Cupcake pulled Andromeda to the side, trying to ignore the angry glare the younger girl was giving her.

"What do you want, blood-traitor? You know I only listen to you because my sister says to," Andromeda snapped.

"Listen to me, then. You are not helping anyone, least of all yourself, with your foolishness during our games. You do not need to show off fancy flying or try to distract the other team by yelling insults at them. All you do when you act like that is distract yourself from finding the Snitch. It would impress people a lot more if you could catch it as quickly as you did when you first tried out for the position of Seeker," Cupcake lectured her. Andromeda rolled her eyes and gave an annoyed sigh.

"But doesn't it help if I make it harder for the other team's Seeker to find the Snitch?" Andromeda whined, "Maybe you just don't want me to show everyone that I'm better than YOU at flying."

"You may very well be better than me when it comes to fancy flying tricks. However, Quidditch isn't an acrobatics contest. Your job as the Seeker is to simply find the Snitch and catch it. There are no judges you awarding you points for doing loops in the sky or for how many insults you can use," Cupcake sighed in frustration.

"But that's no fun!" Andromeda whined.

"If you want to just fly around for fun, do it on your free time. You're going to have a lot more of that next year if you don't play the role of Seeker properly, because you won't be on the team anymore," Cupcake retorted, "I am not going to have a Seeker who disrupts practices with taunts and foolish showing off."

"Do what she says, Andromeda. I was expecting to see Slytherin win at least once during my last year here at Hogwarts," Libra added, butting in on the conversation with her warning.

"I can't believe you're siding with that blood-traitor! You're supposed to be on MY side!" Andromeda burst out at her sister.

"This has nothing to do with purebloods or mudbloods or..."

"Don't use that word! 5 points off, Libra!" Cupcake scolded.

"But I'm NOT the reason we're losing! Libra, tell her it's Daisy Puff's fault for ignoring me when I tried to distract her! That's why you...MMPPHH!" Andromeda's voice was muffled as Libra clamped a hand roughly over her mouth, looking angrier than Andromeda had ever seen her.

"That's why you what? Tell me, Andromeda, what was Libra going to do about Daisy not reacting to your petty insult? Did she have anything to do with the fact that Daisy was attacked by that thestral just a few days after that game?" Cupcake asked, suspicious. Libra obviously had something to hide, given the way she had silenced her little sister so fiercely. She noticed that Andromeda got a frightened look in her eyes when the thestral was mentioned. Of course, Cupcake reasoned, she could be frightened of the thestral, or she could know something about it that her sister didn't want her to mention.

"I believe it is time for the game to start, Miss Quigley," Libra replied coolly before Andromeda could answer the question about the thestral.

"It is. But don't think I won't look into your connection to the thestral incidents later," Cupcake warned the Elm sisters before leading the team out onto the field. She noticed Severus Prince was in the announcers' box.

"Hello, everybody! I hope this will be an exciting game! First, the Slytherin team! Cheer for Cupcake Quigley, Libra and Andromeda Elm, Diana Goyle, Tom Twinkle, Edwin Knuckles, and Louis Weasley! And cheer for the Hufflepuffs too! Titania MacMillian, Vanilla Zabini, Strawberry Shortcake, Chorlton Zapper, Violet Waters, Candy Painter and Roxanne Weasley!" Severus announced excitedly.

The game began, and things seemed normal at first. Both Hufflepuff and Slytherin were racking up points, and they were tied 60 to 60 when the trouble began. As Cupcake threw the Quaffle to Libra, who was closer to the goal, she noticed a burst of light coming from the Slytherin locker room. Then she heard a whistle and a loud bang, as if someone was shooting off fireworks. There was another whistling sound, this time much louder, and then it began for real.

"It's chasing me!" Cupcake heard Titania MacMillian shriek, and barely got out of the way as Titania flew past her, struggling to outfly the firecracker rocket that was chasing her. Several other rockets were launched into the playing field, all of them coming from the same place the first flash had appeared, and there was total chaos as the players abandoned the game to dodge incoming rockets and spinning sparkler wheels.

"Down there by where the Slytherin team came out! Someone's trying to ruin the game!" Severus Prince called out, hoping that no firecrackers would hit the announcers' box, as he didn't have a broom to escape on. The firecrackers suddenly stopped being released, and instead, a lone figure on a broom flew out from where they had been coming from.

"It's David Longbottom!" Andromeda exclaimed. Indeed it was, and he hadn't come empty-handed, either. Flying right past his own fireworks with a whooping holler, he tossed several pink gumballs into the air. The gumballs inflated into gigantic bubbles of sticky gum that floated in the air. Both Cupcake and Libra, who had managed to dodge a firework that was still spinning around, crashed into one of the bubbles and they were both stuck to it. The bubble bobbed closer to the ground, weighed down by the two trapped girls, but it still stayed in the air.

In a different part of the field, the Snitch had crashed into one of the bubbles and was stuck there, and both Andromeda and Candy had spotted it. They dove at the bubble, but because Candy was much closer, she didn't have to speed up as much as Andromeda did. Candy reached the bubble first and clasped her hand over the Snitch as Andromeda plowed right into the bubble, popping it all over her face.

By this point, Neville was in the air, trying to catch David so he could bring his son down to be punished. David noticed him and tried to fly away, but Diana managed to grab the back of his broom.

"That's cheating! It's against the rules to grab an opposing player's broom!" David whined, repeating a rule that he himself had broken before.

"You're not a player right now. You're not even supposed to be on the field, and you're definitely not supposed to be shooting fireworks and bubbles everywhere," Diana retorted sternly, holding David in place so that Neville could catch to him.

"Good job, Diana. I can see why they chose you to be Slytherin Keeper. As for you, David, what could have possibly compelled you to perform that prank you just pulled? You could've seriously hurt people if they fell off their brooms! Believe me, I know what that's like," Neville said, referring to his very first Flying lesson.

"THEY wouldn't fall off their brooms. They're good at flying, unlike you," David smirked back.

"That still gives you no reason to disrupt the game the way you did. We are going to see Professor Hagrid and you can tell him exactly why you thought your prank was a good idea," Neville replied. Diana helped him take David off the field, although she wasn't sure if the game had been called off by this point. Her uncertainty was ended when she heard the announcement that came next.

"It looks like Candy took the Snitch right off of the bubble! Hufflepuff wins the game!" Severus exclaimed, "I don't think the Snitch has ever been trapped like that before!"

"It's over, everyone! Let's come down so we can make sure no one was hurt," Cupcake called to the rest of the Slytherin team, although she certainly also hoped that none of the Hufflepuff players got hurt either.

"Louis got hit by one of the fireworks," said Tom Twinkle, who was carrying the part-Veela boy on his broom. Cupcake looked around, and she thought that it looked like Roxanne Weasley had also gotten hurt by something, as she was on Violet's broom. She led the team back to the locker room.

"Longbottom is going to PAY! I was going to just look for the Snitch, just like you said, and he ruined everything!" Andromeda raged, the entire front of her body covered in pink, sticky bubble gum.

"Tergeo," Libra said simply, pointing her wand at her sister. The bubble gum slowly disappeared as Libra ran the wand over Andromeda's body, and then she did the same to herself, as she had crashed into one of the bubbles first along with Cupcake.

"You don't need to get revenge on Mr. Longbottom. Professor Hagrid is going to punish him. Please don't cause any more trouble this year, Andromeda," Diana said gently.

"But why can't we all take revenge on him for ruining the game?" Andromeda complained loudly.

"Unless you can think of a revenge method that doesn't break school rules, I suggest you don't even think about it," Cupcake replied. She sighed. While Andromeda hadn't done anything wrong during the game, someone else still managed to mess things up for both teams.


	23. Heroes and Villains

Chapter 23: Heroes and Villains

"That can't be true. You're just trying to make him look bad again," Chocolate Quigley said flatly. He could not believe what he had just heard. Harry Potter would NEVER rob Gringotts like a common thief!

"I wasn't the one who said it first. Ask Ruby Gorgok. She told me and Rebecca all about it," Andromeda smirked.

"Maybe he had a good reason and she just didn't know about it. I can't believe someone as self-sacrificing and wonderful as Harry Potter would do such a thing!" Chocolate argued.

"Or maybe you're idolizing the wrong people. How about looking to someone like Lucius Malfoy for a role model?" Andromeda suggested.

"Why would I want to be like a Death Eater? I'm not joining you and your sister, Andromeda. My own father is muggleborn, I can't join any group against them," Chocolate replied, "I'm going to ask Louis Weasley if he knows anything about this supposed 'robbery' his uncle was a part of." It was during the middle of May, a time when most students were studying for their final exams. Chocolate had decided to take a break from his studying and had been ready to go visit the recreation room when Andromeda had stopped him in his tracks with her shocking information about Harry Potter.

"That's true. I guess it's hopeless for you since your mother ruined her pureblood line and gave birth to filthy half-bloods who don't even act like real Slytherins," Andromeda sneered.

"Why do you think can decide what a real Slytherin is? Why do you always judge people because of who their parents are?" Chocolate cried out, tears forming in his eyes at Andromeda's racist insult. Andromeda was about to give another sneering reply when Cupcake came up to her side, looking stern.

"What do you think you're doing with my little brother, Elm? I'm watching you. I know, you claim to not be involved in the thestral attacks, but your behavior before the game two weeks ago said otherwise. You know something, and I'm going to eventually find out what that is," Cupcake threatened.

"If you keep threatening the thestral, it might start going after blood traitors too. It already attacked Scorpius," Andromeda snapped back.

"Oh? So you know something about what this mysterious thestral might want to do next?" Cupcake asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That's not what I mean!" Andromeda yelped, a note of panic in her voice, "I mean that the thestral obviously hates mudbloods and would hate blood traitors too!"

"You know, thestrals don't normally run wild in Hogwarts and specifically attack people based on blood prejudices. Someone is controlling it, someone human, and you seem to know something about the person controlling it. When I questioned her, Diana Goyle told me you were trying to protect it the last time it attacked," Cupcake said. "Now, that could just be because you seem to have the same beliefs that its master does. Or maybe it belongs to someone you know?"

"It's just because I want it to kick the mudbloods out! I can't even see thestrals!" Andromeda whimpered. It was true, Andromeda had never seen anyone die, and thus she could not actually see the thestral. What she had been able to see was the effects of its attack on Amber, and it had been obvious where Bridget and Diana were aiming when Andromeda blocked their attempts to capture it.

"Well, stop helping it. You or anyone will be punished for aiding the thestral attacks. And that's 10 points off for use of the m-word and tormenting my brother," Cupcake snapped. Andromeda stuck out her tongue childishly, but she stomped off to the girls' dorm, finally leaving the Quigley siblings alone.

"Andromeda said that Harry Potter robbed Gringotts once. Is that true? I don't think he would ever do something like that, but she said that Ruby told her first, and Ruby's father works at Gringotts so she might know about it," Chocolate said. He hoped that Cupcake would've learned something in history class about it, since Professor Creevey liked to talk about Harry Potter a lot.

"Why don't you ask Ruby about it? Louis Weasley is over there, and Harry Potter is his uncle, so he might know about it too. I don't remember ever hearing anything about Harry actually stealing anything from Gringotts, at least, nothing like stealing someone else's money," Cupcake answered. True, the answer might be in one of the many textbooks she had accumulated over her 6 years at Hogarts, but rather than searching through her books, she thought it might help Chocolate to talk to someone who was in close contact to his hero. Chocolate saw where his sister was pointing and went over. Louis was reading his Muggle Studies textbook, and Chocolate was unsure at first if this was really a good time to interrupt him.

"Hmm? Do you want to learn about Muggle Studies early? I agree, I wish everyone took it, because I hated waiting until 3rd year to join that class. I liked it better when Professor McDonald taught it, though, she was a lot nicer than Professor McAngus," Louis said, noticing that one of the first years was staring at him.

"No, it's not about Muggle Studies, it's about your Uncle Harry Potter," Chocolate said nervously. He couldn't help but stare at Louis. It was strange, the way the older Weasley boy was so handsome and elegant, it was almost hypnotizing sometimes.

"What about him? I don't think he's going to come visit Hogwarts again this year, he and Aunt Ginny just visited for Memorial Day earlier this month. Although maybe if he did come here, he could catch that thestral that's been attacking muggleborns," Louis mused.

"No, it's more about something he did in the past. Andromeda said that he once robbed Gringotts Bank, but why would he do that?" Chocolate asked.

"It was to find one of Voldemort's Horcruxes so he could destroy it. He didn't want to take any money or anything like that, but one of the Death Eaters had a Horcrux stored at Gringotts and Harry had to go steal it," Louis answered, "What Andromeda told you is true, but I doubt she knew the real reason." Chocolate was very relieved to hear that. The way Andromeda had put it, it had sounded like Harry had stolen someone's money, but needing to find and destroy one of Voldemort's Horcrux was a very good reason to rob Gringotts. Chocolate had been at the lecture that Harry and Ginny gave in the Chamber of Secrets, so he knew a little bit about what a Horcrux was, and it sounded like that destroying those things helped make sure Voldemort stayed dead and didn't come back to life again.

"If that's the reason, then it was a very good one," Chocolate agreed.

When Andromeda had gotten to the dorm room she shared with the other girls in her year, she found her sister Libra was there, sitting on her bed.

"Kick Cupcake next for me. Or else use one of those spells that messes with people's memories, because she's getting suspcious of me," Andromeda whined.

"And whose fault is that? I'm not the one who keeps letting things slip. I see it was a mistake to have told you I was a thestral Animagus," Libra sighed, "I want you to promise me you'll make sure you keep our secret, no matter how much Cupcake questions you. And don't try to protect me or help me so obviously when I'm in my thestral form."

"Why don't you try killing someone? You always seem to leave your victims alive. Killing one of those mudbloods would send the message that they need to leave the school right now or else they'll DIE," Andromeda suggested.

"I've considered it. It's true that the Killing Curse never fails unless the victim is protected by a love sacrifice. However, there are a few reasons I've hesitated. First of all, if I, as the thestral, actually killed someone, they may threaten to close down the school, and I don't want Hogwarts to be closed entirely, only to mudbloods. The only way to prevent the school from closing down would be to find someone else to blame the thestral attacks on and arrest them. However, I'm not sure who would work as a scapegoat," Libra explained.

"What about Professor Hagrid? I heard he has a herd of thestrals in the Forbidden Forest," Andromeda said.

"He does, but I don't think that would work. The idea of one of his thestrals getting out of control would work for more random attacks, but I'm pretty sure thestrals don't normally choose to specifically attack mudbloods. Everyone's convinced that someone else is controlling the thestral and giving it orders. For me to be able to kill someone and get away with it, there has to be another person who others would suspect of 'controlling' the thestral in the first place. Professor McAngus seems to be convinced that Scorpius Malfoy is the culprit, but I'm not sure if there is a way to make the others besides her believe that he is the one behind the attacks," Libra thought aloud. It had been something she had been thinking about for awhile, but she hadn't told Andromeda about it because she didn't want her talkative sister to give anything away.

"What if you captured him and used his wand? And then modified his memories so that he thought he was the one who killed your mudblood victim?" Andromeda suggested.

"That might work. However, I will need you to help me, since you share some classes with him and perhaps you could bring him to me," Libra said, "He probably wouldn't trust you, but he would trust a note from Professor Sanders. That's who I want to kill. I want to show everyone that mudbloods do not deserve to be Hogwarts professors and teach such an obviously magical subject such as Charms."

"I can certainly do that. I can use the detention notes he gave me earlier in the year to figure out his handwriting," Andromeda agreed, "This will be a triumphant blow against both mudbloods and blood traitors!"


	24. Libra's Defeat

Chapter 24: Libra's Defeat

On May 21, which was a Tuesday, Libra and Andromeda put their plan into action. They had chosen this day because Andromeda had Potions with the Gryffindors in the morning, and thus she could possibly find a chance to slip the note to Scorpius without him noticing. Andromeda was lucky, as a chance came early on. When she arrived in the classroom, Scorpius was in the classroom with Galaxy. Andromeda approached them, trying to pretend to be friendlly for once.

"Leave him alone. He's not going to want to be YOUR partner," Galaxy snapped in defense of her friend.

"I just wanted to give him this. Professor Sanders asked me to give it to him," Andromeda said in a somewhat defensive tone. Scorpius took the note cautiously, hoping it wasn't some kind of trick, but the signature and writing looked like it was a legitimate note.

"It's okay, Scorpius. He probably just wants to help you with levitating things, since you were having trouble with that when we were reviewing it," Galaxy said gently. Andromeda fought the urge to sigh with relief as she went to her own seat, as she wasn't entirely sure Scorpius was going to trust a teacher's note that came from her.

Later that day, after supper in the Great Hall, Andromeda was restless. The plan was to take place at 7 that night, at a time when neither Scorpius nor Libra would be missing from their classes. Libra finally approached her, and after making sure no one was listening in on them, she whispered in Andromeda's ear.

"Did you give him the note?" Andromeda nodded in assent, nervously excited. She wanted to be able to watch, but Libra had forbidden it, as that could get them both caught if anything went wrong. Libra went to the girls' bathroom, and after making sure that all the stalls were empty, she cast an Invisibility spell on herself, so that she could sneak into the Charms classroom unnoticed until the time was right. She hurried to the third floor, making sure she didn't bump into anyone, and finally slowed down as she reached the Charms classroom. Zachary Sanders was at his usual desk, grading papers, and he didn't notice Libra as she slipped inside the room. She stood against the wall near the door, waiting for Scorpius to enter.

"Professor Sanders? What did you need to talk to me about?" Libra silently smirked as Scorpius walked into the classroom.

"What do you mean, Mr. Malfoy?" Zachary asked, looking very confused. Scorpius was too. He started to pull out the note and then Libra acted.

"Petrificus Totalus," she whispered, pointing her wand at Scorpius. He fell over like a rock, laying on his side so he could watch but not interfere. Libra then whispered "Silencio," making sure that Scorpius could not cry out to warn anyone. She then snatched his wand off the floor where it had fallen after setting her own on a desk.

"What is going on here? Show yourself!" Zachary commanded, pointing his wand where he thought he saw Libra attacking from. Libra did so, undoing the invisibility she had placed on herself. At the same time, Diana Goyle was heading to the Charms classroom, wanting to have some of her questions answered before the final tests started in June.

"Avada Kedavra!" Diana heard the Killing Curse spoken and crept to the door. Peeking into the room, she saw what looked like Libra Elm turn into the thestral! She bit down a scream; she had to attack quickly before Libra noticed her and escaped!

"Petrificus Totalus!" Diana called, stepping into the doorway. Her aim was true this time, as she had caught Libra completely off guard. The thestral collapsed to the floor just like Scorpius had. Diana then tore out of the room, searching for someone who could help. She didn't know how long the petrification would last, although if Libra had escaped by the time she returned she would at least have seen who the thestral was. No one had suspected that it could be an Animagus! As she ran through the hallway, she crashed right into Bridget.

"What's wrong, Diana? Is there another thestral attack?" Bridget asked.

"YES! It's...I trapped it!" Diana managed to pant out.

"Show me," Bridget said simply. The two of them hurried back to the Charms classroom, where both Libra and Scorpius were still petrified. Bridget looked at Scorpius in confusion, unsure why he was there.

"Is there a way to turn her back into a human? I know that's Libra, but I don't know if people would just take my word for it," Diana said.

"There is," Bridget answered, and she pointed her wand at Libra. She did not say anything, but a jet of light came out and surrounded the fallen thestral. Both she and Diana watched as the thestral morphed into an older teen girl with Libra's usual appearance. She then pointed her wand at Scorpius, releasing him from the Body-Bind. He immediately began sobbing incoherently and shaking.

"What should I do now? Should I stay here or go get Professor Quigley?" Diana asked, unsure what to do with Scorpius. She was also a little afraid to be left alone with Libra, in case the curse wore off and Libra attacked her too.

"You can go tell her what happened. I'll stay here and make sure Libra doesn't escape. I will make sure your heroics are rewarded later," Bridget said. Diana nodded and headed off again, this time going towards the Headmistress's office. Unfortunately, when she finally made it to the 7th floor and was getting close to her destination, Amber blocked her pathway.

"What are YOU doing out at this time of night? Going off to harass innocent Gryffindors? I know exactly what kind of person your troll-like father was, and I'm sure you're no better," Amber sneered.

"No, I need to see Professor Quigley, please. Professor O'Blarney and I trapped the thestral, and it's actually Libra Elm. She's a thestral Animagus," Diana pleaded, "I don't know the password but I really need to see her so Libra can be punished for attacking people."

"You're not making any sense. Why would you WANT her to be punished if she's the thestral? You're a Slytherin and that means you're on her side, right?" Amber said, confused at what she was hearing.

"No, I'm not on her side. I tried to stop her from attacking you, remember? She killed Professor Sanders, too," Diana continued.

"Libra did WHAT? Jupiter!" Amber snapped at the gargoyle statue that guarded the Headmistress's office. It jumped aside and the stone wall opened, revealing a spiraling staircase. Amber roughly yanked Diana onto the step behind her, and the two of them rode the moving staircase as it spiraled upwards. They got off and Amber shoved Diana through the door in front of her. Amanda was at her desk, surprised to see her two visitors.

"What can I do for you?" she asked, hoping Amber didn't just drag Diana in to falsely accuse her of something.

"I found the thestral! It's really Libra Elm, she's an Animagus!" Diana blurted out.

"That explains it!" Amanda exclaimed as she stood up, "No thestral would normally act that way, and we could never find a person controlling it-it wasn't a real thestral after all! Amber, go find Professor Sprite, we may need to use Veritaserum." The three of them went back to the Charms classroom. Libra was sitting up, obviously unfrozen, but Bridget had her tied to a chair so she couldn't escape. Scorpius was still whimpering, but he seemed to have calmed down a bit, and he was sitting in a different chair that looked a lot more comfortable than the one Libra was tied to.

"As Diana probably told you, she's the thestral," Bridget said, gesturing towards Libra. "She is the one behind all the attacks on muggleborns this year, and she just killed Zachary Sanders today."

"I know. What we need to do now is figure out exactly what happened here. I know the general idea, but not the details," Amanda said.

"I was going to the Charms classroom so I could ask Professor Sanders for help in reviewing for the exam. When I got there, I heard Libra using the Killing Curse, so I peeked inside. I then trapped her with Petrificus Totalus after she turned into her thestral form, and then I went to find someone who could help," Diana explained.

"Thank you, Miss Goyle. I will make sure you will be rewarded later. What about Mr. Malfoy? Why is he in here? Was he coming in to ask questions too?" Amanda asked.

"I was given a note from Professor Sanders and so I came to the Charms classroom just like it said. Libra Petrified me when I entered the room and then she...she used my wand to..." Scorpius managed to speak before breaking into sobs again. Bridget looked at the wand on the floor, at the one on the desk, and then she picked up the first one, which normally belonged to Scorpius.

"Prior Incantato!" she called. A ghostly figure who looked like Zachary Sanders floated out of the tip.

"You said you were given a note? Who gave you this note? Someone may have set this up as a trap if that note was forged," Amanda realized.

"Andromeda Elm," Scorpius whimpered, realizing he had been tricked. Andromeda's sister was the thestral, did they plot the whole thing together? They were interrupted by a frightened gasp as Amber reappeared with Amethyst Sprite, who had dutifully gathered a bottle of Veritaserum.

"I knew it! I knew Malfoy was involved! Why isn't he tied up too?" Amber demanded.

"Because he was probably just used as a pawn, or else he just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Now that we have the Veritaserum, we can question Libra and find out exactly why she was using HIS wand to kill Professor Sanders," Amanda answered.

"But she's still just a student," Amethyst protested.

"Libra Elm came of age last year," Amanda replied coolly, and Amethyst reluctantly gave her the bottle of clear potion.


	25. Sisters On Trial

Chapter 25: Sisters On Trial

Amanda poured a few drops of Veritaserum in Libra's mouth, which Libra took obediently though sullenly.

"What is your name?" Amanda asked, beginning with a simple question to make sure that Libra was paying attention.

"Libra Elm," the owner of said name answered emotionlessly.

"Did you use Scorpius Malfoy's wand to kill Professor Sanders?" Amanda then demanded, getting right to the point.

"Yes," Libra replied, though she was glaring at Diana.

"Were you planning on framing him so it would look like he was the culprit?"

"Yes."

"Was your sister Andromeda involved in this plan of yours, and what part did she play in it?"

"She was. She delivered a false note to Scorpius so he would come to the Charms classroom."

"Does she know that you are a thestral Animagus?"

"Yes."

"Thank you for complying with us. However, we will probably still tell the Ministry of Magic about you and your sister, and the two of you will go on trial soon. Scorpius and Diana, I would like you two to come to the trial with me as well, as witnesses," Bridget said calmly after Amanda was finished with her questioning.

"Yes. Put the evil Slytherins in Azkaban," Amber whispered in a gleefully nasty tone.

"I'm just relieved this nightmare is over. I was so afraid I would be attacked again," Amethyst sighed.

"Whether or not the two of you are deemed guilty by the Ministry of Magic, as Headmistress of Hogwarts, I declare the two of you expelled. You are both barred from completing your final exams, yes, ESPECIALLY you, Libra. You and your parents will be contacted by the Ministry about your trial. Until then, get ready to leave Hogwarts for good," Amanda said.

The trial was held on June 10, which was the Monday after the final exams were finished. The Floo Network had connected Hogwarts to the Ministry of Magic, and Bridget, Scorpius, and Diana used the fireplace in the Headmistress's office as their method of entry. The five of them headed to Courtoom Ten, the same dungeon that had been used for Harry Potter's trial back in 1995. Instead of one chair with chains attached, there were two, one for each of the sisters, and there were also other chairs for the three witnesses and for Gemini and Lyra Elm, the parents of the two accused girls. Two Aurors, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, were guarding the door in case either of the sisters tried to attack or escape.

"No! It's not fair! Why is that...that mudblood in charge of our trial?" Andromeda shrieked when she noticed that Hermione Granger, as part of her job as the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, was overseeing the trial, with the Wizengamot as her jury.

"How dare you speak to Hermione Granger that way!" Scorpius roared at her. He started to point his wand but Bridget grabbed his arm firmly.

"Hush, now. Please stay calm during this trial or else you may be asked to leave or punished," Bridget told him. Scorpius lowered his wand but still glared fiercely at Andromeda. Ron stared at Scorpius in surprise, amazed to see someone who looked so much like Draco defending his muggleborn wife.

"Let us begin," Hermione said, seeming to ignore Andromeda's insult, "Disciplinary hearing on the tenth of June, into offenses committed by Libra and Andromeda Elm. The charges against Libra Elm are as follows: That she did purposefully use the Killing Curse to murder Professor Zachary Sanders, that she became a thestral Animagus and never registered with the Improper Use of Magic Office, and that she repeatedly used this thestral form to assault students and professors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The charges against Andromeda Elm are as follows: That she did knowingly aid her sister in the murder of the aforementioned Zachary Sanders, and that she lured Scorpius Malfoy into the site of the murder in an attempt to have him framed for the murder that her sister committed." Gemini Elm raised his hand, and Hermione acknowledged him.

"Please, Mrs. Granger, Andromeda and Libra are still children, and they did nothing wrong. They were merely preserving the lofty goal of ridding Hogwarts of those from inferior bloodlines," he pleaded, showing an obvious source for Andromeda and Libra's racist ideas.

"The Ministry of Magic does not support such a goal. Under the law, all magical children are allowed to attend Hogwarts, with no such restrictions on bloodlines or family background. It is also against the law to use any of the Unforgivable Curses and to be a willing accessory to murder," Hermione replied coolly.

"But it shouldn't matter! Killing inferior mudbloods doesn't count as REAL murder!" Lyra protested.

"That is not the way the laws are written, Mr. and Mrs. Elm. The laws do not follow your personal beliefs anymore," Hermione continued.

"Well, they should," Gemini muttered petulantly, but he and Lyra quieted down for the moment.

"Let us continue despite the interruptions. You are Libra Elm?" Hermione questioned, turning back to the two sisters who were in the chairs. They did not have the chains around them, although the chains had jangled ominously when they both sat down.

"Yes," Libra answered coolly.

"You used the Killing Curse on Zachary Sanders with the intent to murder him?"

"I did. And I'm glad I did it. I am also a thestral Animagus," Libra admitted proudly, "That is a clear sign that I am of true magical blood, as I am sure no muggleborn could attain such a transformation."

"Are you aware that both offenses you have admitted to are punishable by a lifetime stay in Azkaban?" Hermione continued.

"Yes, although there was a time when the Ministry itself was rightfully concerned with preserving the rule of pureblood witches and wizards," Libra replied.

"We are not here to discuss what the laws may have stated in the past, we are concerned only with the laws of the present time. The Wizengamot will decide their verdict soon. Now, you are Andromeda Elm?" Hermione asked, turning to the younger sister.

"Of course I am! And I'm only 12! You can't have me punished like an adult here!" Andromeda whined.

"Now, do you admit to being an accessory to the murder of Zachary Sanders?" Hermione questioned.

"Of course I would help my sister! And that blood traitor Scorpius should be the one being punished, not me! I wanted HIM to be blamed! Diana ruined everything!" Andromeda raged.

"Do you realize that being a willing accessory to murder is punishable by law?" Hermione challenged her.

"But Scorpius helped too! Libra wouldn't have been able to do anything if he wasn't there for Libra to steal his wand!" Andromeda protested.

"Let me repeat, a WILLING accessory to murder. You decieved him into entering the scene of the crime on the false pretense that Professor Sanders wanted to talk to him, am I correct?"

"Yeah, but he could've not come in the first place! He could've ignored the fake note I gave him! He could've fought back more when Libra Petrified him and stole his wand!" Andromeda pleaded uselessly.

"So you also admit to having forged Professor Sanders's signature?"

"Yes, but he's a mudblood and I'm a pureblood! I should be allowed to do whatever I want to him!" Andromeda demanded. Hermione ignored her and turned back to the Wizengamot.

"All in favor of charging these sisters as guilty?" she asked. Almost everyone raised their hands, aside from one witch and wizard who still held the older view that the life of a muggleborn was of lesser worth. "Libra Elm, you are hereby sentenced to a life sentence in Azkaban, and Andromeda Elm, you are sentenced to 10 years in the same prison."

"It's not fair! How can a mudblood be allowed to sentence us?" Andromeda whined as the assigned Auror guards led her and Libra out of the courtoom.

"Because it IS fair. And don't say that word in my presence again or I may get rough with you," Ron snarled at her.

"The court is dimissed," Hermione finally announced. Andromeda and Libra Elm would never cause trouble at Hogwarts again.


	26. Family Reunion

Chapter 26: Family Reunion

Around the same time the test results were announced, during that second week of June, Samantha Rain returned to Hogwarts along with the students who had gone to Beauxbatons for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. It was a triumphant return, as Amy Zimmerman had won the Cup for Hogwarts, and she carried it proudly into the Great Hall as she and Samantha Rain lead the returning students in.

"YAY FOR HOGWARTS! GO GO!" Bianca cheered, standing up at the Slytherin table and pretending she was a cheerleader. Many other students applauded, and Samantha Rain took her usual spot at the head of the staff table. Pansy seemed a little annoyed by her return, possibly because it meant that she would go back to being a regular teacher and wouldn't get to be head of Slytherin anymore.

"Well, it's good to be back, although it was very interesting to visit Beauxbatons. I always like visiting new places and learning about how other people do things, sometimes we can learn a lot from them. First of all, let's have a cheer for Amy Zimmerman, the winner of the Triwizard Tournament!" Samantha Rain announced, and the Great Hall erupted in cheers again.

"I've heard France is a romantic place. I would like to visit there sometime. Maybe I can go visit Beauxbatons someday," Bianca commented.

"In light of recent events, I would like to also congratulate Diana Goyle and Bridget O'Blarney on their success in subduing the thestral Animagus that had been attacking both students and teachers this year. Come here, both of you, to receive your awards," Samantha said. She first handed Bridget her award, since she was already at the staff table, and then Diana came over from the Slytherin table to receive hers.

The next day, the exam results were handed out. Rebecca was sitting near the lake, looking at her grades, when Severus Prince approached her excitedly.

"Hi, Rebecca! How did you do? I think I did pretty well, I mean, I wasn't perfect or anything, but I passed everything!" he blurted out.

"Well, it looks like I did the best at Potions, although I could've studied more for Astronomy. I guess I got overly confident since the muggle school I went to also talked about that subject. I wish there had been a Charms test, though, I was doing so well and I was so confident about that test and then that...that...why did Libra have to ruin everything and kill Professor Sanders?" Rebecca snarled.

"I've never heard anyone be angry about a test being cancelled," Severus giggled, but then he became more serious when he realized why Rebecca was so upset. "I'm sorry. I know you wanted to prove yourself to Andromeda and her sister, and Charms really does seem to be your best subject. I'm sure if you did take the test, you would get one of the best scores."

"It's just that out of all the tests, they had to cancel the one I was looking forward to the most. I wouldn't have minded if it was something like Astronomy, Professor Parkinson hates me anyway," Rebecca said, "Not that I like her either, the way she's always favoring the ones who are lucky enough to have real witches and wizards as parents. It's not MY fault Dad isn't magical."

"No, it's not your fault, and there's nothing wrong with that. My mother is a muggle too, my father is a wizard, though. I think both wizards and muggles can be fun people to be around, and I like making friends with all kinds of people, whether they can do magic or not," Severus replied, "I wish my cousin Daisy would be my friend, though."

"Do wizards have royalty? I was just wondering, since your name is Prince," Rebecca mused, suddenly changing the subject, "Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny never told me about any wizard royalty, though."

"It's just a name. At least, I don't know of any wizard royals either. There might be some muggleborn witches and wizards who are related to muggle royalty or aristocrats, though, at least at some point in history. But there are some pureblood families who used to act like they were wizard royalty, like the Black family or the Malfoys, but they're not really treated like that anymore. I know that Scorpius Malfoy doesn't see himself as being like royalty, he seems to hate himself for being a Malfoy instead," Severus answered.

"Which is stupid. He's not Draco, he can take charge of his own life and make it his own! Just like I'm going to prove that I'm different from my family too," Rebecca declared.

Of course, the school year at Hogwarts had to come to an end, and the students were soon in the Great Hall, ready to hear the announcements about which house had won the most points that year.

"I know that this was a rather eventful year, given the attacks that happened, but I hope everyone found at least something that they will remember as an enjoyable memory. The house totals are, as follows. Gryffindor is, sadly, in last place again, with 415 points. Ravenclaw got 424 points and is in third place. Slytherin is in second place, with 444 points. As for the winner of the House Cup, that honor goes to Hufflepuff, which has 483 points!" Samantha Rain announced, and yellow and black banners and decorations appeared all over the room. Several of the Gryffindors were shooting nasty looks at James, who had lost them about 100 points by himself for his thievery of Polyjuice Potion from Amethyst's office earlier that year.

"I don't mind that we didn't win this year either, we got closer this time. I'm just glad that Diana was able to find out that Libra was the thestral and catch her," Bianca commented.

"And Andromeda got expelled so she won't cause trouble anymore," Serena added.

"I wonder who will teach Charms next year. I hope Professor Rain finds someone nice. The new teachers this year are kind of mean, except for Professor Patil, and I don't think she's staying like the others," Bianca said.

"Diana said that Professor McAngus was put in Azkaban for being muggleborn, and that's why she hates Slytherins so much. It's weird that she hates Scorpius, though, since he's in Gryffindor, and she usually likes Gryffindors the best. You'd think she would realize that he hates everything his family stands for, with the way he yells about it so much, but she's another of those weird witches and wizards who think that everyone is just like their parents," Serena said with a roll of her eyes.

"Why would people get put in Azkaban prison for being muggleborn? That's not against the law!" Bianca gasped, she had never heard of that before. She had heard that at one point, the Death Eaters had been capturing muggleborns, but she assumed that the people the Death Eaters had captured had been taken somewhere else, not in the same prison that REAL criminals went to!

"I don't really know. That's just what I heard Diana say," Serena sighed.

"Maybe we'll learn about that next year in history class. Or we could go to Diagon Alley and see if there's any books about it there," Bianca suggested, "I bet even if you're not interested in reading about history, I bet your parents would like the bookstores. From what you've told me, it sounds like they're really curious about witches and wizards and like learning about us."

"They already bought many books from Flourish and Blotts, and they'll probably buy more again next time," Serena said, "I'm surprised you didn't see them."

"Since I didn't see you the day I picked up my school books, maybe we just went on different days?" Bianca thought, "Since your parents don't mind the owls, maybe I'll send you a letter and we can go together next time." Serena agreed, finding herself a little curious as to what Bianca's American cousins were like.

It wasn't very long until all the students were back on the Hogwarts Express, heading back home to their parents or guardians. This time, there was a surprise for Scorpius. When he got off the train, this time with Albus, he found someone new with Harry and Ginny, Andromeda Tonks.

"Hello, Scorpius. Harry here has told me all about your family situation," she said as Harry and Ginny greeted James and Albus, "Would you like to try staying with me for the summer?" Scorpius truly was surprised, and unsure what to think. He had known that his great-aunt Andromeda had gone through some of the same things he had, since she also knew what it was like to disagree with muggle-hating relatives. On the one hand, this would be a chance to get to know a family member of his who he actually shared many beliefs with. On the other hand, he had enjoyed staying with Harry and Ginny, although he had been worried about how James would treat him if they went back to living together for the summer. After they had broken up their friendship back in February, James had ignored him completely, but Scorpius still could sense that James was angry at having lost what he had thought was a loyal follower.

"Why can't he stay with us?" James whined, breaking Scorpius out of trying to think through who he wanted to stay with.

"If he really wants to, he can. I just thought that he might like to stay with Mrs. Tonks because she's not only related to him, but he seemed to get along with her at Teddy's wedding," Harry explained, "If Scorpius does choose to stay with us, don't make him be a decoy for your pranks anymore, especially after what those Elm sisters did to him."

"What's wrong with my pranks? You did the same things when you were my age!" James whined.

"We'll talk about that later, James. First we need to know Scorpius's decision," Harry said.

"I really liked staying with you, Mr. Harry Potter, but I would like to try staying with my great-aunt Andromeda this summer. But if you would like me to stay with you, I don't want to upset you," Scorpius spoke up, sounding rather nervous about making such a request from someone he admired so much.

"No, I think it would be best for you to get to know Mrs. Tonks, Scorpius. But if you ever want to come visit, we're always a Floo ride away," Harry said. After some more conversations and greetings, Scorpius finally went off with Andromeda Tonks, still a little unsure but curious to get to know her better. Despite the fact that the school year was over, this would be a summer of learning, not only for Scorpius, but for other Hogwarts students as well.


End file.
